Recently I went to a parent’s meeting with our beloved youth group. The leader had us all do this exercise, so we could gain some insight into why people react to moving away or to here, the way we all do. We are involved with the military community, and where we are located, people are always moving to and fro.
Without getting into the list, I’ll tell you- none of them felt like they fit me.
The back of my mind has been working, trying to figure out which animal could possibly be my alter-ego.
I’m pretty used to people moving, by now. It’s just part of this life. I think I build in that partition, so to speak, when I meet people. And some— any partition just melts, we are such kindred spirits! (If you’re reading this, you know who you are!! 💕)
Anyway— getting back to my personal animal, I think I have it narrowed down.
With people moving on, I think I’m mostly a dolphin. Happy for them, happy I met them, happy I can stay in touch through technology.
With hard situations? I am no dolphin!
Kind of a hermit crab, maybe.
I have a safe place to retreat into— my house, prayer, my music, my sitcoms…. Safe to recover from fallout of bad reactions to and from uncomfortable situations.
A snapping claw to defend myself— unfortunately it also sometimes draws blood— usually unintentionally, but on occasion… I’m better than I used to be, I’ll just say that.
This week my inner hermit crab is making full appearances.
Stress has hit me hard. The heaviness weighs down on my heart., as well as my physical health.
I don’t often see things the same as others, and sometimes that seems to invoke strong reactions from others, which then makes me want to defend myself as a reflex action. (God help me if any of them happen to read this. Sigh.)
We all have some animal we identify with.
I think the more I remember to look for that in others, the better I will be at not retreating into hermit crab mode.
Maybe, anyway.
Jemtree's Heart 