For When You're Grumpy
& you just can't shake the funk from a bad day (or for no reason at all)
You know those days where you wake up on the wrong side of the bed (errr, let’s get personal: a toddler climbed into your bed at 1am and kept you up for 4 hours straight) or you run into one obstacle after another and your day feels like the story of Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day?
(One of my all-time favorite children’s books, btw!)
No one is exempt from grumpiness.
Even the most bubbly people have crappy moods. I bet Bob Goff’s wife would tell us he’s crotchety every now and again. (Of all people though, he might be an anomaly. I have the hardest time picturing Bob without a smile plastered across his face 24/7.)
I’ve become known as a person who advocates for love and grace to the utmost degree, and still I’ve got friends and relatives who will tell you I’m not always loving and gracious to be around. Poop days happen and bad moods occur for no reason at all sometimes.
Instead of preaching on how we all have the ability to turn bad days around (yeah, yeah, positive mindset stuff) or how we need to be especially conscious of our reactions since chewing out the person who robbed us of our spot in the parking lot isn’t going to solve anything (darn it, yelling makes me feel better!), I simply want to share…
3 things that actually help me on weird/frustrating/grumpy days:
Throwing my hands up in surrender and talking to God — but like real talk. Here’s what this typically sounds like… out loud, in my car usually: OK GOD, screw today. Nothing is going as planned. This is so bad it’s almost comical. I give up. I surrender. What might you have in store for me? Please be cookies and a show at 8pm and then bed by 9:30. Deal?
Pausing to pivot my plans. Instead of swimming upstream against the current, I pause to ask myself where the floaty is and how can I get in, kick back and float with some ease? Could it be sending a text message to reschedule something that was planned but can wait for another day? Is it taking 10 minutes to replenish my soul through a walk outside, a solo coffee date, a phone call to someone I trust? What if I reached out to a friend and simply asked for help (with the baby, the errand, the task at hand)?
Staying off of social media, and sometimes away from other people. “Scrolling for the last hour made me feel so much better!” -said no one, ever. On days where I feel blah or irritated, being online and watching other people’s highlights only exacerbates my funk. Taking it one step further, sometimes the most loving thing I can do is steer clear of others as to avoid bringing someone down with me.
A few bonus things that are often helpful on a prickly day: eat, sleep, move my body.
A longer table lifestyle is a journey, not a destination.
You don’t have to be perfect (spoiler: you aren’t and never will be —a relief we can stop pretending & pursuing it relentlessly!) and you’re allowed to have a rotten day. It doesn’t make you a bad person. Thankfully, there are new mercies waiting for you every morning. So say you’re sorry and make amends with anyone you’ve crossed paths with where it wasn’t pretty, and then move on. :)
Yet there is one ray of hope: his compassion never ends. It is only the Lord’s mercies that have kept us from complete destruction. Great is his faithfulness; his loving-kindness begins afresh each day. — Lamentations 3:21-23, TLB
Confession: This Tuesday letter was inspired by my own recent Grumpy Day where my attitude was unnecessarily sassy and rude to a receptionist at my OB’s office. I felt so convicted afterwards that I went back to where she was sitting at her desk and apologized… full of embarrassment that I had treated her in a way she didn’t deserve and probably contributed to her own grumpy day.
At the risk of sounding corny, I want to tell you that I’m so glad you woke up this morning! When I think about a world in which you’re not here, it breaks my heart. Do you have any idea how many people love you??? I sure hope so.
Now take a moment and pass that message on —in your own words, or steal mine. I dare you to take your love, adoration, or appreciation for someone “too far” today.
Love & a chocolate chip scone (key to Grumpy Day Prevention),
Manda
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It is so hard to shift when I wake up grumpy. Thank you for these really helpful reminders!