Another early morning finds me sitting in the office atrium, catching up on the day’s rhythm, seeing if I can match the beat. The energy is too slow, involving shuffling instead of stepping, a resignation in the bend of the head. Clearly I am not going to be a helpful dance partner. I need to carry the day differently…which propels me towards an entirely different train of thought. How to carry the day.
Should it be carried gently as a sleeping baby in your arms, held with acute awareness of its inestimable preciousness? Or with abandon? Tossing the day up in the air with delight, watching it return to your hands gleefully anticipating the breathlessness of being thrown higher again and again.
Perhaps it should be carried over your shoulder, as one carries shirts fresh from the dry cleaner? Protected in plastic that provides the security that they will make it home spotless and pressed (assuming you don’t fall into a puddle).
Do you hold the day like a briefcase – holding so tightly to the handle that your fingers ache, secure that no one will be able to take it from you?
Or
Like a well-worn handbag held casually and almost mindlessly – its weight comfortable in your hand, its contents familiar (save for the occasional forgotten lipstick and dollar bill at the very bottom of the bag).
How do you carry the day?
Held tightly against you like a cell phone to your ear, doing all you can to make sure that no one can hear what you are attending to? Protectively guarding your privacy despite being in the middle of all this humanity??
Do you carry the day with confidence or trepidation? Delight or dread? Is it one more parcel to hold along with too many others to effectively juggle? Do you push it away as a stroller or a shopping cart, keeping control of the direction by keeping a certain distance between you and it? Is it pulled along like a rolling suitcase, casually unaware of its contents (for after all it is always behind you).
Do you balance the day like an overly full cup of coffee that is thisclose to spilling over, taking mincing, tentative steps to avert sartorial disaster?
I suppose different days require different handling. Today my arms are at my sides, keeping questionable rhythm with my feet. Today perhaps the day itself will carry me.
Waiting for the Karma Truck 
Reblogged this on quynhnn and commented:
this day is tired with me
Thank you very much!
Reblogged this on Wholeheartedness and commented:
And, do we carry the day or does the day carry us?
That’s the question..;-)
You might hurt something, trying to carry all the time. This is the lesson I had to learn.
Me too – a lesson I had to learn. Somedays I let the day carry me…
excellent and beautifully written- depending on the circumstances I have carried the day in many of the ways you describe–today is a tenative day that I hope turns out to be comfortable
I do too – I hope it is comfortable and not unwieldy. Something at least that is manageable if not exactly light as a feather!
Beautifully written 🙂 With that offering, you have chosen to carry the day with grace, elegance, dignity, and humility. I have goosebumps!
You have given them to me – thank you!!
Mimi, I love this. How appropriate in today’s world. Many carry the day as if the weight of the world is on their shoulders. Others, carry as if they are Sisyphus and today is no different as any other before this. Thanks! Bill
Thanks Bill – how ironic that I used the symbolism of Sisyphus in a workshop I led yesterday!
Brilliant! So ripe with metaphor – and all exactly spot on. You truly made me think.
Thank you so much! Your thoughts made me smile!!
Interesting thoughts. I would like to think that I carry my day like a balloon on the end of a long piece of curling ribbon. Sometimes it is necessary to make a slip knot and slide the day, bracelet style, over a wrist where it bobs along above your head trying to make your steps just a tad lighter. The worry of carrying a day like a balloon is that balloons tend to get free from your grasp and float off into the blue, ribbon fluttering along waving good-bye. Or even worse – they pop.
Thank you for some refreshing morning thoughts. I hope your day is a good one, no matter how you carry it or if it gets away from you.
I’m just letting today take me where it would like to go – so far that’s involved some baking and a little cooking, reading (Maya’s Notebook – by Isabel Allende – it’s very good) and waiting for various repair people to show up..:-) Hope you are having a wonderful day!
You, m’dear, are carrying the day with great aplomb, as only YOU can do! Beautifully written and oh so evocative, honey. I love it, and you….xo
Oh my sweet friend, my day got off to a terrific (albeit truncated) start because I got to connect with you. And the day is just carrying me along – I ceded control and just decided to let it go…xoxo
I have long ago given up carrying the day. My lower standards involve getting through my “to do” list. Happiness involves accepting my limitations!
I have a hunch you carry the day for many people – possibly more than you realize!!
Sometimes when we are fixated with decisions about “life”, it is great to be brought back to thinking about the moments of the day, THIS day. You did that for me today. Thanks.
You give me far more credit than I deserve Elizabeth..You are so sensitive, wise and intuitive, you would have arrived at this without me. I’m just so gratified that you shared your thoughts with me. Thank you.
Read your post early this morning. Marked the various high and low points. And concluded that I covered all bases. Dread. Delight. Doom. And back. Thanks for the thought provoking post. Where’s my well worn hand bag?
It’s in the mail – marked ‘fragile’ and very highly insured
I enjoyed your post, as always, Mimi. You got me to thinking, and I believe the way I most like to carry my day is as though it is a feather that gets where it needs to go, but at a leisurely pace and manner, taking time to meander, and to admire and appreciate beauty, leaving enough space and time between must-do’s to ensure that I don’t omit the little but important things such as scratching my dog, watching a hummingbird flit, taking a moment to smile at loved ones and strangers, looking for ways to show kindness toward others, or to simply to sit back and notice my breathing and the miracle of life and of love, and to show gratitude for the many blessings all around.
Russ
And I would call that a day fully lived Russ – lived beautifully and in grace.
First of all I love that photo. Zip lining in a dress and heels is very brave. This is a wonderful piece and came just at the right time. All week I felt as if I were in a circus, trying my best to be a juggler with my time, failing terribly and leaving me nothing but drained. Today….it’s all about peace!
Good for you!! I’ so happy that you’re going to let it all go today and let the day carry you! Enjoy the calm..and as always, thank you for stopping by!!
Thanks for putting into words an important thought for each day. The truth is, sometimes we carry ourselves in many of these ways, depending on the circumstances of the day. This post reminds me that if we put thought into it, we can try to carry ourselves in the best light possible and the rest will hopefully follow, and if not, we carried ourselves in a positive light anyway. Xo
I agree with you Fran (that’s not new) – different times and catalysts in our day can certainly affect how we carry ourselves as the hours pass. Carrying it all in the best light possible can only help makes the moments that follow that much better..xox
I love this, and so timely. What a perfect reminder to me, all of us, to think about how we approach, and carry, our days. I get a fun visual when I think about those I know, or pass on the way to work, and how each person could be carrying their day in all of the ways you mention. And, how important it is for us to realize we are each going about it in the way we best can, for that day. It helps too, because one day might be the tightly-held coffee cup kind of carrying and the next, the tossing-the-baby up with giggles. Brilliant my dear…brilliant. Yes. No arguments. It’s Friday. xoxo
xox…may each day just be full of joy..
Carry th day. Never thought of it. Mine day/s are helter/ shelter. Alternating between weak and strong.
I think many of us can identify with that!! 🙂
Please correct the typos in the above comment. (th should be the. Mine should be my. shelter should be skelter)
Thank you, Yvonne
Absolutely wonderful! Thank you! Perfect reading for this Sunday morning! 🙂
Thank you so much!!
HI Twinky, I enjoy reading your writings. I only wish I could write like you! Beautiful post. Learning to live a day at time is not always easy as I tend to be a worrier. Most days I do quite well and leave it all in the hands of my higher power. Have a fabulous day. hugs, Renee 🙂
Hi Twinkle!! I too am a student of living one moment at a time, and when it doesn’t cause me anxiety, I do it fairly well..;-) Have a wonderful day!! hugs, m
Good to hear from you Twinky. I get anxiety, not often, thank goodness. I get through it pretty good with positive thoughts and prayer. hugs, Renee 🙂
Interesting images…
Great post Mimi gives us all pause for thought. As for my approach, it’s what do I need to concentrate on now, which became a little bit more difficult when I read the cup of coffee part of your post. So off to grab a java, and back to getting things done.
Laughing…Totally relate to needing the java before giving ANYTHING serious thought Keith!! 😉
Beautifully written~
Thank you very much!