Monday morning's inner voice

Cherry

By Caldwell

Mon, 19 Aug 2024
  • 334 reads
5 comments
 

You sit there, slumped in your chair, eyes glazed as you stare at the mountain of tasks before you. From above, I watch you, observing the weight you carry, the invisible burden pressing down on your shoulders. You seem stuck, immobilised by the sheer enormity of it all. The room around you is littered with the remnants of half-finished projects, the loose ends of things started with good intentions but left incomplete, each one a silent reminder of what you haven’t yet done.

I see how you shrink under the weight of expectation - not just from others, but from yourself. The imagined eyes of those around you whisper judgements you’ve long internalised: "You should be doing more. You should be better." But as I hover above, I see what you can’t - the deep well of care that still exists within you, even when you feel drained.

You’re not lazy, you’re not failing; you’re overwhelmed. It’s as if you’re standing in quicksand, every move feeling like it might pull you deeper into a place you fear you won’t return from. And yet, I want to tell you this: the quicksand isn’t as deep as it seems. The weight isn’t as heavy as you believe.

If I could, I would reach down and take your hand, give you a gentle nudge. I’d say, “Just start. Just one small step.” Because here’s the thing: once you start, the mountain begins to shrink, the quicksand becomes firmer ground. You don’t need to conquer it all at once - no one expects you to. You don’t need to perform for the imaginary audience, either. What matters is that you begin.

So, go on. Choose one thing, the smallest, simplest thing. Tidy that one corner, write that one sentence, answer that one email. You’ll find that once you start, the momentum will carry you forward. The fog will lift, the pressure will ease, and you’ll remember that you are capable.

And if you stumble? That’s okay, too. You can pause, you can rest, and then you can try again. No one is watching as closely as you think. You’re allowed to be human, to be imperfect. You’re allowed to struggle. But I know you have the strength to take that first step. Start now, and you’ll find your way through.

Certificate U
Other
Short Prose
Spiritual
Inspiration Point (work that responds to our weekly writing cue)
Journal
Autobiography

Comments

Submitted by Insertponceyfre... on

Very wise words!

 

Submitted by Rhiannonw on

It sounds as if you have someone particularly in mind, But most of us have probably experienced this in some degree. Do one thing at a time, don't stare at the multitude of tasks you would like to do, and feel overwhelmed. Good IP resonse Rhiannon

 

Submitted by Caldwell on

Hahaha. I went to bed without doing the washing up. I have an oven extractor fan sitting in the middle of the floor in my kitchen that needs to be mounted, but before that, I need to rewire which means in turn that I need to break my plasterboard. I have actual work to do, but whenever I sit down at my computer the first thing I want to do is get back to creative writing which I inevitably do and before you know it, an hour has gone by, I look up and there's the post I haven't responded to, the sink is now entertaining a party of flies, the plants are patiently waiting to be watered and it's all crowding in on me. Sometimes the best way to overcome your inaction is to see yourself as someone else who needs that encouragement. Stepping outside yourself is the only way of not getting trapped.

 

Submitted by celticman on

step inside yourself and find Monday morning's inner voice on a Tuesday. 

 

Submitted by Caldwell on

I think I have mastered the art of stepping outside of myself, but stepping inside is something that I have never even heard suggested. Could be a whole new branch of therapy, that.