Having moods, but not being them.

It’s extremely helpful to get to know your moods.

It means the difference between automatically falling for them and being swallowed by them, or becoming aware of what’s going on and keep a bit of distance.

When I say ‘moods’ I guess I mean every single emotional situation we can find ourselves in.

Not just depression or anger or sadness, but also self-righteousness, disappointment, elation, confusion, and ‘just not feeling very well’.

I call them moods because they are temporary, they don’t define or underpin us, and they have a real impact on how we live our lives.

Moods are all the elements of an experience, seamlessly integrated as one.

We have them all the time.

When I didn’t feel this distinct but subtle difference between the gazillion fleeting emotional circumstances and the realization they were going on, I stumbled from one mood to the other.

I was a total mood victim, and of course I blamed the world and the people in the world, most of the time, which made me feel utterly helpless and hopeless.

But this relationship with how life feels to me and impacts me and burdens me changed when I started to directly recognize the only thing that never changes.