External Blessings, Internal Blessings

It is cold this morning in Port Townsend. The temperature has barely risen above freezing for the last four days, although today promises to be a little warmer, 38º to be exact. The sky has been unusually clear during this time, I suppose this is due to unusually low humidity for this area. The sea is beautiful when the sky is clear. The water reflects blue from the sky and appears to be a deep, teal color. The tide has been low during the afternoons, so I've enjoyed a beautiful sandy beach during my walks along the water this week. The cold brings a blessing of beauty, clarity and wide sandy beaches this week.

The weather changes rapidly, here on the Olympic Peninsula. Warmer weather moves in, starting today, and the temperatures will rise into the 40s this weekend. Along with the warmer weather comes moisture and clouds, so rain is predicted early next week for several days, again. It's only been about a weeks since the last rain or snow fell yet I already miss the clouds, the mists and the rain. I was not aware of how natural the cycles of rain and clouds feel to me when I lived in Santa Fe. There was not enough moisture, clouds or rain for me to notice how I react to the ebb and flow of rainy weather. In Santa Fe, I usually felt dry and longed for the clouds and rain, so I could not know how I'd feel during times of abundant rain and cloudy days. I love the rain and the clouds. I feel nourished by the cocoon created by the clouds that keep the Earth's warmth close to the surface while keeping it moist with rainfall. I feel blessed when the clouds arrive.

I think of my emotions in a similar way. When I feel emotional, I am not able to think clearly because the emotions influence my thinking. When I was a math and physics student, that seemed like a distraction from pure logic, a loss of clarity. I discover that I like the experience of my emotions. Of course, they influence me, which is as I want it to be. I don't want my emotions to control me, as might happen were I to go unconscious and identify with my feelings. I want to experience and be aware of them so that I can allow my responses to what happens in my life influence how I live and what I choose. My emotions are like the clouds, mists and rain; they're blessings when I'm open to receive them.