Everyone is leaving tomorrow and nobody feels quite right. Even William is crying his head off, instead of going to sleep. Sidra was feeling really badly because she will miss everyone. I will miss them both, as well as their parents, who seem to center us as much as they do their kids. Go figure.

I think there is a direct relationship between the age of the person and the intensity of missing family togetherness. I realize that not all families are harmonious but I’m sure that all young children feel the intensity of missing their parents. It is a struggle that sometimes is never quite resolved. And if it is resolved, it can unravel a bit seeing a child experience the raw sense of loss.

Changing the subject or compartmentalizing has worked in the past for me. Thinking about something else can take some of the sting away. But this brings up some questions: Is it good to take all the sting away? If not, what is the right amount of sting to leave?

Is it fair to compare this with physical pain? Everyone has a certain threshold for that. In terms of neurology, the limbic system is an emotional circuit, complete with thalamic relays, just as the circuits for physical sensations, so I think emotional pain is comparable to physical pain.  Perhaps learning a satisfactory way to cope with emotional pain is, on some level, equivalent to what a yogi does to raise he is or her threshold of physical pain.

There are consequences to taking all the pain away from missing those who are dear. In raising one’s emotional pain threshold, one probably has to cross a higher threshold to feel enjoyable emotions.

So, I’m going to let myself feel sad and remember the truly great time I had with everyone here.

Today’s experiment

Sad walking line.  I don’t think Paul Klee would approve, but I had an idea in mind when I took my line for a walk, just after writing the above thoughts. I didn’t know exactly how my lines would work out, but I am somewhat satisfied with this sketch.

I don’t have much to say about it. It just is.