Dealing with stress

My apologies for not blogging much lately; this has been quite a stressful time lately but please, no need to worry, all is in hand.

This is a brilliant reminder of how finely tuned and balanced life can be at times and I want to tell you about this as an encouragement, particularly if you identify with this.

There are many stresses and strains for people in each of our sectors in the UK right now and without doubt readers from elsewhere in the World will not be far from these issues. Some many countries are, quite frankly, almost bankrupt having been living off borrowed money for too long.   We are all "feeling the pinch" and last week's public sector strikes were testimony to that.  Although I wasn't on strike myself, many of my Ministry of Justice colleagues were and I have much sympathy with the stand they took.  Government direction is hard to fathom at present and I read tensions in Whitehall and observe the implications of No.10 and Petty France (of SW1) not agreeing on things.  I've heard a certain Government Minister speak a couple of times lately; a fairly plain speaking man but I reserve judgement on how much faith or trust I have for him and in what he says.  This troubles me.

Then I sometimes doubt my own abilities, especially when I am faced with a straight forward problem but get stuck.  The dark, cold and inhospitable weather is a major stumbling block for me during this winter.  I am very wary of running in the dark as I've had a few falls this year, simply through tripping up on things I haven't seen.  Mind you, I can trip and stumble quite easily in broad daylight!  Cycling opportunities have been limited through needing my car for work quite a lot recently.  Two weeks ago I re-joined the gym and have been twice.  You get the picture, I am missing running and cycling.

And yet, in spite of these negative factors, I have an underlying belief that everything is - and will be - okay.  This morning while driving to work I experienced an overwhelming sense of well being, almost a runner's high without the running. Truly a blessing from God.  Having a restful couple of weeks is not a disaster.  I suspect I'm putting on a few pounds in weight but giving my leg joints and muscles a rest is no bad thing.  Before long the Christmas break will arrive with all that fun, I'll become fitter again quite quickly.  It'll be a break from work, enjoying a real family Christmas time together.   Without doubt I'll be out running, mentally preparing for the year ahead and the next 50 years - full of optimism, rising above those [ultimately] meaningless problems and worries.  It's gonna be a good start to 2012 and I can't wait!