Our cats, Starbuck and Mocha, are very much a part of our family.  We go outside for our morning cup of coffee.  Once they have finished breakfast, they like to settle in close to us for a morning nap after their late night excursions. A few day ago, we were out for our early morning togetherness.    Mocha came up for feeding.

Looking around, we found Starbuck sitting out in the grass. As we looked at him, he gave a pitiful meow and kept sitting in the grass. As we tried to beckon him, he stood and began to move in our direction, but very slowly. He put each paw down very cautiously, as though he feared to make a move.   He was so slow in coming that Richard finally went out and picked him up and carried him to his feeding dish

Starbuck's weird behavior continued.  If we picked him up and a noise occurred, he would jump out of our arms and sail into the air, trying not to touch the patio.  He would run through the grass as if trying to avoid some terror.  It was then that we decided, just maybe, he had stepped into a mound of ants. We checked him out for  swollen paws, but found nothing. For days on end, we watched this frightened little cat live a life of misery. He would flee from any sudden noise and would not eat if we were not there to put the food in front of him.   He smelled every blade of grass and cautiously picked where he stepped.  We looked forward to rain, hoping if ants leave a scent trail when they crawl, maybe the rain would wash it away.  We knew something had to alleviate the anxiety that had crept into Starbuck's life.  Our once happy cat was miserable.

As sad as it is, there are many people today that walk around with anxiety as their constant companion. They fear disease, gangs, loosing their job, the weather, strangers. They fear forgetting to take their medications and then fear taking them because of side effects.  The lists grows longer with time as Americans become  paralyzed by the anxiety that binds them.  

If you have read much on my site, you know how I believe in and have documented from different sources the power of our mind.  As human beings, we are the most intelligent form of life on earth. But we let all the power of our mind lay dormant.  We forget that with our minds we decide our life.  We make or break ourselves.

It is totally normal to agonize over a death, a loss of a job, a relationship breakup or an illness. It's when we allow our sorrow to linger, to build, that our problem starts. Our thinking decides when our life will change.  If we can mentally picture a ray of hope in the future, if we say words like "I am going to make it!", we do! It can't be a one time sermon to ourselves.  It has to be constant reinforcement.  Then sooner or later you will notice that your outlook has changed.

I often think of the days when people, neighbors conversed more.  Woman would have work days, quilting parties, etc.  They talked. They connected. They left feeling better at the end of the day. Someone had listened.   How sad that many people no longer have friends or neighbors to listen to heart cries.  Author Patrick Lencioni says, "We all need feedback in our life." Our minds tend to dwell on self because there is no other place to go. Our imagination can play havoc with our physical, mental and spiritual self.

If you don't have a confidant to share thoughts and feelings with, make it a priority to seek out a person that you know will be completely confidential.  Anxious feelings look totally different once they are outside our thought life. This may require someone other than a friend.  Professional counseling may be the solution. Just make sure the person you choose comes highly recommended. 

In the end, much of what happens to us, is up to us.  Anxious feelings can be turned into an asset that starts a driving force toward a better life.  It's important to remember that a storm(anxiety, worry, fear, etc.) that lingers
can intensify.  Then we have to deal with the aftermath sooner or later.  It is powerful to face the very thing that tries to destroy us.   We were not made to live a life of anxiety.  However, the good life does not come automatically.  It takes work, determination and a dream. Is it worth it?  What do you think?

Starbuck is all better now.  His 'perceived' enemy that lurked around every corner has left the premises.  He walks with confidence everywhere he goes.   That is what I wish for you. 

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