Feelings 2

I used to think that my feelings were the first respondent to the things that happened in my life. Something happened that I could see, hear, smell, taste, touch; and seemingly instantaneously, I had feelings of one kind or another.

Dr. Candace Pert (neuroscientist and pharmacologist) disproved my former assumption scientifically in her book, The Molecules of Emotion. During the More To Life Weekend, I learned that lesson experientially.

Years later, during a training I was leading, the group was having a hard time getting this concept. Without warning, I started jumping up and down, flailing my arms, loudly uttering
nonsensical sounds. Then I checked in with the group. Different people had different reactions/feelings, caused by different thoughts – some felt anxious (thought: she's lost it); some felt curious (thought: she's pulling a stunt); some laughed (thought: she's clowning around). Really, all I wanted to do was illustrate the point that one event/lifeshock/happening that everyone witnessed at the same time resulted in a wide spread of feelings, depending on the lightning-quick interpretations, which we rarely notice. 

Here's 3 momentous facts about feelings:

1. I have no control over what happens/doesn't happen in my life (yes, I know; sad, but true);
2. I have little to no control over my lightning-quick feelings/reactions to those events (yes, I can smush them down, but I still feel them).
3. However, and most importantly, I have total control over how long I wallow in those feelings.