Stuck In Gloppy

When my son was a four years old, his favorite game was Candyland. The game teaches children how to match colors to move around the game board. But sometimes, you get “Stuck in Gloppy”. This means you lose your turn while others move around the board until you draw the exact right color.

There are days, where I feel I am “Stuck in Gloppy”. I’m tired, crabby or nervous about doing a task I’ve procrastinated about. On those days, it is a challenge to look on the bright side, stay calm or think a better feeling thought.

My negative thoughts start building and gathering like a storm. There’s a part of me that believes if I can find what’s causing the problem, I can solve it and all will be perfect again. The trouble is, that just leaves me looking at almost everything negatively. I get “Stuck in Gloppy”.

For me, the solution is to take a broader, more vague view of the problem. Making soothing statements like, “I was late on my taxes before, and it all worked out”, “Maybe that person has something really challenging going on in their life”, and “Everything eventually gets done”. Now I can move forward, just a little, leaving Gloppy behind.