Emotional maturity and Understanding Feelings – what does that mean? Our world is full of both goodness and social unrest. My observations of current world issues lead me to believe there is value in conscious emotional awareness – emotional maturity.
Consider events such as politics, corporate well-being, crimes against others, grief, anger, school shootings, and so on. Conscious or unconscious emotional responses have everything to do with the maturity of our leaders, children, families, and individuals.
Understanding

Emotional maturity means understanding how we experience and respond to feelings. For a simple example, imagine someone speaking harshly toward you. What is the first emotion you feel? Shock, anger, misunderstood, defensive, or something similar. When you feel the emotion, is it conscious or unconscious? For a unique example, remember someone who speaks lovingly to you. How is your immediate emotional feeling different from the first example? Caring, open, understanding, and warm. Again, when you feel the emotion, is it conscious or unconscious?
Continue ReadingWhen I feel vital, I feel connected to life, the energy of life. Now, life could be many things: a specific project, the manner of living, tissue/organs, a specific relationship, or the secret life inside you. When was the last time you felt vibrantly alive and thought to yourself, “I’m feeling vital?” What is the difference between feeling vibrant and vital?
I’m full of questions today. When I compare definitions of the two, vibrant refers to energy or activity, whereas vital has more to do with life sustenance. A subtle difference, but hey, we’re building our emotional vocabulary! Some would even say feeling vital is about feeling alive or important. Oh, there are so many ways to interpret feeling vital.
When I feel vital, I feel energetic, for sure. I also feel connected to life, like I’m an important component of life. Not like the world would not survive without me, but I feel connected to it. When I go to the doctor and they check my ‘vitals’, there is a context of the things required for me to be on the north side of the daisies. Here, though, I’m talking more about feeling vitally connected to a community, to relationships, to the heartbeat of the world around me. Connected to life.
In how emotions function on our behalf, vitality helps us understand what it means to feel alive. That sounds kind of ‘duh’, but feeling vital and connected keeps us coming back for more, doesn’t it? Perhaps the function of feeling vital is part of what keeps us living to experience another day. Aren’t you glad we get new days to try new things, or feel differently, or spring forth into a new adventure?
Vital is a nice emotion to keep in our library of feelings. When I feel disconnected, I enjoy pulling vitality off the shelf to remember how connected I am. What’s going on with you? What does it mean for you to feel vital?
Emotions are the heartbeats of our souls…
If you would like to explore more feelings in the Stayin’ in Touch – Positive Emotions book, click here for more information.
Continue ReadingYes! What if Yes was a person walking through your life with you? Imagine for a moment that you’re taking adventures with your friend Yes and what those adventures would be about. This is an idea that comes from SARK and one of her Juicy Journaling products I have enjoyed for many years. In this short missive, I’ll share some of my musings about my friend Yes, and the engaging questions from SARK’s Juicy Journaling.
Write a short story or poem about taking a day trip with YES. Where do the two of you go? What do you do? What do you take away from the adventure? Thank you SARK!
My friend Yes and I went to the ocean together the other day. We walked in the water, along the shore, we played in the sand and waves, watching fish and birds. We did some people watching, too. When we were thirsty, we drank, and when we wanted to sit and rest, we did. We laughed with others when we wanted to and stayed in our own little world when we wanted to. I love living spontaneously with this friend.
Here’s another one — Yes and I spent the day coloring. We chose the colors, let the colors flow from pencil to paper, and we played games while we colored. We listened to music and sang along sometimes. While we colored, we let our minds travel freely to think about whatever came to the surface. My mind enjoys the freedom to spin around on the topics of its choosing; it makes room for new understandings and ideas. My mind likes the fresh air, just like I do!
Yes is always forgiving and enjoys being recognized. Do you suppose Yes is another form of my inner wise self? (Inner Wise Self is another SARK idea I find useful in my life.)
Today, Yes and I are writing. We’re practicing a bit of writing with these Juicy Journaling exercises, and we are spilling words into Alexis’s other writing projects. I wonder if Yes would help me write a story. She is fun to hang around with, and she has some interesting ideas to share.
Oh, Yes and I are drinking purple right now. (Grape soda.) Yum!
Okay — I want to hear about your adventures with Yes. Where are you going? What is it like there, and what are you learning from your friend Yes? Thank you, SARK, for inviting me to explore my relationship with Yes!
Continue ReadingWhat does Mad look like to you? I see a burning face with a furrowed brow. Sometimes, it looks like a kid (or perhaps an adult) having a tantrum. Sometimes, it looks like a pot of hot water boiling over; water spewing out all over the place, making a mess of things.
Continue ReadingThis is a little different… Something I do periodically, and regularly, is to write a letter from my All-Knowing Potential to myself. I’m going to take a risk here and share one of my letters with you.
Maybe my letter will inspire you to try something similar for yourself. Let your inner wisdom speak with you and see what guidance or idea comes your way. Ask the power within you for help with something and see what direction comes to you.
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Life Gifts
- I send you chortles, giggles and warm hugs.
- I send you tender, loving arms to hold you in care and love.
- I send you warm, comfortable rest.
- Sending you a luxury craft to drift in a while you regroup.
- I send you light to illuminate the places inside you that seem dark.
- I send you soothing cups of hot tea, your favorite music to listen to and time for you to relax and enjoy.
- Sending you tasty inspiration.
- I send you focus as you practice setting up new routines to support your engagement with your true self.
- Sending you rain to nourish the earth so that the earth can nourish you.
- I send you wide open spaces big enough for all your dreams to materialize.
- Sending you nourishing soup for your soul.
- Sending you loving hands to cradle your tender heart.
- I send you delicious moments to remove clutter from your life.
- Sending you music to fill your heart with warmth and comfort.
- I send you the deep, rich colors of berries to paint your soul.
- I send you fresh, crisp apple bites of life to bite into everyday.
- Sending you pillows of prosperity to share with yourself and others.
- I send you patience to allow new things to unfold positively for your life.
- I send you fresh strawberries to enjoy in a mild, sunny meadow upon a lush spring mountain.
- I send you a warm hand to hold as you experience the array of feelings that go along with the death of your loved one.
- I send you buckets of bubbling, juicy kindness.
- I send you warm blankets to snuggle with as you sip warm tea and warm up your cold body.
- Sending you love and caring.
- I send you permission to be exactly how you are today.
- I send you flexibility to allow your writing dream to come to life as you live it.
- I send you delicious moments filled with rare and marvelous accents that grow your heart.
- Sending you perfect laser focus to follow your warm heart.
- I send you delightful whimsey, goodness over flowing, and creative deliciousness today.
- Sending you a bubble full of love and healing, to hold you and your heart.
- I send you quiet fields of lavender to enjoy soft, quiet moments.
- Sending you joy and glee in celebration of your accomplishment.
- I send you fresh, fragrant flowers with lots of different colors to brighten your corner of the world.
- I send you different flavored lollipops to quench your craving.
- I send you patience and understanding, and a powerful little elf to manage all your worries.
- I send you healing love and energy.
- I send you giggles and chortles to accent all the moments of your day.
- I send you glorious freedom to move your body and experience joy.
- Sending you a magical cool sheet to snuggle in and feel safe.
- I send you fireworks of inspiration.
- I send you bright-colored flowers that fragrantly shower your surroundings with joy and delight.
- I send you comfy pillows to cradle you in love and comfort.
- I send you a path of petals on which to tread as you navigate life.
- I send you a warm spot of cheer and buckets of love for you to use as you wish.
- I send you showers of confetti filled with sparkling, renewing energy to keep you fresh and succulent.
- I send you calm as you step back into work from being off for a few weeks.
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