HOLIDAYS!

Well we just all traveled through Memorial Day weekend. How'd it go? Was it another day in Paradise...or was it 'hell on wheels'??? Somehow Holiday weekends always enlighten.

We may spend them with family and find out how great everyone has turned out to be, or how horrifying they all seem to be. Some wish it could go on forever and others cannot wait to get back to their own private spaace. If you feel the latter, you are not alone...family gatherings can be dreadful (even when it's barbeque time--not as bad as Thanksgiving though...and Christmas--ughhh).

Or we may choose to spend them with friends and prepare for the proverbial "ball". But even then, sometimes it's even more fun, and sometimes it's a very disappointing time.

In either situation some get drunk and make us laugh, others get drunk and can be absolutely nasty and make us feel like 'shit'.

Finally we may choose to spend the Holiday weekend alone. Again for some this is a joy. (I myself used the actual Memorial day to have the car washed; bathe the four dogs and shop at Home Depot and Target for all the things I found missimg on Saturday when everyone was there) Loners also can get to catch up on their reading; enjoy the parade on TV; answer a bunch of emails, or just take a good nap. But some may sit and wonder why they are alone on a Holiday weekend. Again one might ask: "Is it me?"

The question is a very powerful one. If you want an answer it requires tremendous honesty. We all tend to blame everyone else for what isn't going well. (These gatherings can be tremendous gossip sessions), but what we want to examine is what was our role in creating that which was created. Did we provide the smiles or were we responsible for the misery. Could it be possible we were controlling about the whole event?? Could it be possible we complained all day? Did we become too outragous and argumentative because of a beer or two? Or--this is important--were our expectaions simply disappointed, which brings us to what is often the 'root of all evil'....Disappointed Expectations.

Maybe we wanted to see unreasonable expectations met and when they were'nt we became 'let down'. I guess it makes sense to just take our families and friends for being just that--"family" and "friends". As such sometimes they make us feel terrific and sometimes they make us feel 'lousy'. If we come to these occasions expecting nothing more than what they are, we might not feel a real 'high' but neither will we come out feeling really upset.

I truly hope that the experience was great for all of you, but if it wasn't just think about some of the things I suggested above and look forward to a dirrernt kind of fireworks on July 4th!




But we can always look at the positives---it's a good time to examine oneself and find out why and where discomfort comes from. We can actually ask: "Is it me?"