Siggy's Blurbs: Siggy's Edge of Country …

Sometimes I have to focus on something else other than me. I was depressed and made a list of what was getting me down and shared it with my wife. Top of my list was sorting through several hundred records, determining what to keep and then organizing and storing them in some fashion so I could find them. For months I was looking at several piles of them that were placed on top of the bookcase and other places and the clutter had me depressed. I did not know what to do with them. My wife and I discussed places where we could store them in an organized way if we just cleared these spots in the living room. I was thrilled: now I had a way to organize the LP’s I wanted to keep. Yesterday I spent several hours going through these albums. Later on I realized my depression had left. I had focused on something other than me. And another benefit of the list was my wife worked on one thing that was also depressing me. It was a room we had once called the junk room and was now mostly empty. There was no progress being made there. She starting chipping away at it. It looks like that one day we might have a guest room. Once it is completely empty we will paint and furnish it. I was thrilled at the progress she had made in a few days. These were two majors things that had been bothering me. All of a sudden I had hope. And most of my depression left.

Tags: clutter, depression, focus on something else, guest room, hope, junk room, LP's, made a list, making progress, my wife, record albums, several hundred records
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I think Tilla is being amusing and also likes to make me laugh. Sometimes when I call my four dogs in he will be last. He will trot toward me and stop about twenty feet from me and immediately roll on his back as if to say, “Rub my belly. Then I will come in!” He knows I stopped doing that a long time ago. I simply refuse to do that any longer just so he obeys me and comes in when I call him. I come to the conclusion he is being silly and simply likes to make me roar when he does that. Even dogs have a sense of humor. He is not trying to be difficult. He just wants to make me laugh.

Tags: belly-rub, dog makes me laugh, dogs, four dogs, pets, sense of humor, Tilla
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Depression can easily become a pity party.  Our lives are always imperfect.  Things don’t always go our way.  We have expectations that fail.  It is so easy to slide into depression.  I just took a shower and reflected before I married my wife I only had a tub.  For fifteen years I had no shower.  It is all too easily to forget that and the many reasons I have to thank the Almighty for his many blessings.  And I have to reflect on that and count them.  The list is long.  Ingratitude is very easy to go to.  Our lives never go exactly as we we want them to.  Our lives are always a series of problems and only some get solved to our satisfaction.  That is life!  If we can go back and count our blessings and learn to do it routinely depression is less likely to set in.  God does not promise us anything beyond food and shelter and usually His blessings are abundant.  It is too easy to center on what we don’t have.  Our unmet expectations can easily turn into depression if you are not careful.  And then it becomes a pity party.  It is, though, hard to be positive when we don’t feel good.  Good health is a blessing.

Tags: count our blessings, depression, expectations, food and shelter, God, good health is a blessing, His blessings are abundant, ingratitude, life, many blessings, pity party, slide into depression, take a shower, thank the Almighty
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Things just don’t make you happy.  Even when you have food and shelter and your bills are paid that is not enough.  You have to have a purpose–a reason to get up.  There has to be a focus in your life–something beyond you.  Each person on this earth is here for a reason.  You have to discover your calling, reach out and help others in the process.  Things alone don’t make you happy.  And no one can tell you what you ought to do.  Somehow you have to be quiet enough to hear the “tiny voice” only you can hear.  It is easily covered up.  You have to discover it and follow it.  You will know when you are there peace will reign.

Tags: a reason to get up, bills paid, discover your calling, focus in your life, food and shelter, God, have a purpose, hear the "tiny voice", help others, here for a reason, peace will reign, things don't make you happy
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I knew why I was depressed but that was not enough.  There were too many things I had no control of.  My life felt out of control and somehow I had to grab some control back or things would not change.  I would remain depressed.

There were too many things.  I did not know where to start or begin.  There is somewhere to start.  The present.  Somehow you have to listen to what your current concerns are saying.  That is always a beginning.  And then move on to your next set of concerns after you deal with them.  Nothing occurs in a vacuum.

There is a reason the bible says, ‘Do not worry about tomorrow but focus on today.  Each day has enough trouble of its own.’  A slight paraphrase but it is the essence.  Take care of what is more pressing each day.

As far as depression, take care of the major things one by one–the things you have some control of.  It is like peeling an onion:  there is always another layer.  Gradually the depression will lift.  Depression is an indicator something needs to be dealt with.  One by one.

Tags: Bible, depression, do not worry about tomorrow, God, life felt out of control, like peeling an onion, start somewhere, take control
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Flowers are here today and gone tomorrow.  I was watching the tulips come up for a few weeks.  The row of tulips were planted last year.  Yesterday some of them opened and one was already past the peak.  Maybe, that is why we love flowers so much.  Their beauty only lasts a short time.  Other daffodils are opening now.  They did not get as much sun as the others.  I want to go out and examine and view them more carefully.  They are all different.  Isn’t that something?  God made each plant like a snowflake–no two exactly alike.  And if I pass too quickly I miss their uniqueness.  I have to slow down.  Maybe, that is what natures forces us to do–slow down and notice what is before us for it will disappear in a blink of an eye.

Tags: beauty, daffodils, flowers, flowers are all different, garden, God, like a snowflake, nature, notice what is before us, pass too quickly, slow down, spring, tulips, unique
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Last night Cool Hand Luke, my black cat came up to me in bed, arched her back to greet me in bed and got stroked and then settled down in the corner of the bed catercorner to me.  She is one of the three black animals who join me in my bedroom every night.

The other two are dogs:  Coco unusually sleeps to one side of the bed and sometimes Tilla is at the base of the bed unless my wife did not join me right away.  Then he will sleep on the bed to the left of me within reach of me.  This is their routine every night.  Sometimes there are more animals in my room.

Buttons, one of my cats hides under the bed and sometimes in the middle of the night there will be a scuffle between Buttons and Cool Hand Luke.  The two don’t like each other.  Other animals sometimes join us, too like Sweetie and Pax our other dogs.  It is hard sometimes not to step on a dog if you have to leave the room to use the john in the middle of the time (???).

And if there is a thunderstorm during the night all you can hear is the panting of the dogs and sometimes two or three jump on the bed.  I know it is a king sized bed but all our dogs are midsized and crowd us when that happens not to say anything about keeping us awake with their loud panting.  They simply are scared of the thunder and usually have to be kicked out of the room so we can sleep.  Thankfully thunderstorms only happen occasionally in the middle of the night.

Tags: big dogs, Buttons, cat sleeps in bed, cats, Coco, Cool Hand Luke, dogs, dogs afraid of thunder, dogs panting, dogs sleep in bed, four dogs, my wife, Pax, pets, Sweetie, thunderstorm, Tilla
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The red tulips have finally opened–several in fact.  And in another spot I was not paying much attention to a few more opened also red.  And another yellow daffodil with a specially frilled center was almost open.  Every day there are different surprises.  I noticed green berries on one holly tree.  The other tree is the one that gets the red berries.  It was spring time and everything was awakening.  And it was fun walking around the garden to see the next discovery you can make.

Tags: daffodils, discovery, everything was awakening, flowers, garden, God, green berries, holly tree, red berries, red tulips, spring, tulips, yellow daffodil
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