Taking Emotions Slowly

I like to take things slow with my emotions.
They have a life of their own, after all.

They’re like little fairy sprites I trail after,
scribbling in notebooks about their
whimsical nature,
their capriciousness—
how they can turn simple rain
into something that anoints you with its beauty.

Of course, my emotions are also wild.
Feral. Inconsiderate of other people.
And still, I love them.

They make my life so rich,
teeming with meaning and wonder.
Even the painful ones.
Especially the painful ones.

Who wants to live a boring life?

But as much as I adore them,
watch them, try to understand them-
I do not, under any circumstance,
let them make decisions for me.

I mean, I used to. But we all know how that goes.

Besides, what’s the point of having a big, beautiful brain
if you’re just going to put it in the back seat
when you feel something intense?

Discernment is a sacred process.

So yes, I write a lot about navigating with heart and soul.
But even still, you have to navigate with caution.

Feelings aren’t fixed points.
They shift. They transform.
They soften, and then harden.
What they say today might not be what they say tomorrow.

You have to listen to their full story,
and that takes time.
You have to let them expand, contract, and settle.
Only then can you find meaning in them.
Only then can you decide what to do.

It’s much harder—sometimes impossible—to undo:
Knee-jerk reactions.
Volatile outbursts.
Words you can’t take back.
Actions that are final.

So no matter what, I will not be rushed by my emotions.
Even when they are screaming at me,
“You see what’s happening. Do something!”

I love them.
But I am not their puppet.
I will not jump just because they say to jump.

But if they suggest dancing at night
beneath the sparkly lights of the stars—
well, that I just might take them up on.
Because that’s a really good idea.

Writing Prompt:

Your emotions have important things to say. How do you fully listen and honor them without giving them the power to make decisions for you?