Looking for Colors

Yesterday was a gray day - dreary and drizzly, overcast and grim.  I was driving home and thinking about how I needed to go grocery shopping.  Suddenly, at the light, I had three blue cars and one red one around me, and something lifted!  Color triggered some kind of chemical or something, and my energy level rose and I felt better for a moment.  I started considering my upcoming grocery trip - and the discount store I was going to visit.  Every time I go to that store, I come out drained and weary and achey.  The aisles blur by and I go in and rush around on white tile floors, dreading heading up to the self-checkout lanes that ALWAYS seem to have problems.  I keep my eyes on the products on the shelves, or on my list, and mutter to myself as I go through the store (see my previous post about shopping). Then, I remembered the store I found in Ohio that I nicknamed "The Wonder Kroger".  I would drive several miles past the closest grocery store just to shop there. Music played, color was on the walls, and they sold art, furniture, and books beside groceries.  Good smells filled the air and I would stroll through the store, taking my time, and afterwards drive back to my hotel with a smile on my face.

This reminded me of other tasks that I hated to do - driving to work on a congested freeway, or taking a class that I really hated in college.  With the drive I was able to find another route, a little bit longer, that had trees, and a pasture with cows, and a beautiful mill pond.  With the class, I just gritted my teeth the entire semester and wound up with TMJ neck pain - but maybe there could have been another way to deal with it.  Instead of dreading the class, talking about how much I disliked it, and grumbling through the homework, maybe I should have taken a breath and looked for the colors - the good points - and tried to find some way to feel a lift while still accomplishing my goal.  Applying that to my life today, I suppose it can be as easy as putting on some music while I try to clean a little, or choosing to sit on the porch and watch birds at the feeder, instead of staring at my computer screen in my downtime.  And, maybe, when I grocery shop, I can look other shoppers in the face and smile, or slow down through produce and let my eyes drink in the rich colors and textures of the food.  Maybe that will let me get out of the store without feeling like part of my soul has been sucked away.  Or maybe I should look for another grocery store...