I’ve always wanted to be one of those people who don’t take everything so seriously; who isn’t so affected by what other people do and say; who doesn’t feel quite so deeply about everything. I consciously work on building a thicker skin, but alas – some personality traits die hard.
Being highly emotionally sensitive is both a blessing and curse. It allows me to be extremely empathetic and feel even the most benign vibrations ripple through my core like a pebble hitting the surface of glass-top water. This hypersensitivity also makes dealing with any sort of turmoil a challenge.
I recently had a situation arise that produced an instant emotional reflex. I almost instantly flared into rage, then transitioned to hurt, finally cresting into extreme devastation in a very short amount of time. This is pattern for me and breaking personal behavioral patterns is a tough order.
If we are truly put on this earth to learn new lessons each time around and move through them, I am going through that later part right now. Becoming aware of these messages is just part of the battle. Identifying and taking ownership of our seeming faults can be a teaching in itself, but really taking the information and moving forward – that is where true life progression lies. It is so much easier to just react the same way, do what you’ve always done and carry on rather than authentically change and grow.
Transformation is a painful process.
And even when you are ready to begin to alter, the aches that accompany the course may turn even the strongest of humans into frightened babies. Because who likes discomfort? It’s uncomfortable!
A caterpillar crawled into my house from my back patio the other day. I imagine him; the unbelievable physical change that he will soon undergo, all the while shielded in his chrysalis. That protective shell rocks him into a deep slumber, giving him refuge from any physical or emotional pain that may result from the process of turning into a beautiful winged creature.
Perhaps I need to invent a figurative chrysalis for myself to cushion the ache that accompanies this emotional evolution. If the end result is becoming a butterfly in this lifetime, and not having to re-experience the same pain on the next go-round, it certainly is worth the trauma of the process.
No pain, no gain. No sting, no wings.
Lindsay Garric is a Milwaukee native who calls her favorite city home base for as long as her lifestyle will allow her. A hybrid of a makeup artist, esthetician, personal trainer and entrepreneur all rolled into a tattooed, dolled-up package, she has fantasies of being a big, bad rock star who lives in a house with a porch and a white picket fence, complete with small farm animals in a version of Milwaukee that has a tropical climate.
A mishmash of contradictions, colliding polar opposites and a dash of camp, her passion is for all pretty things and the products that go with it. From makeup to workouts, food to fashion, Lindsay has a polished finger on the pulse of beauty, fashion, fitness and nutrition trends and is super duper excited to share that and other randomness from her crazy, sexy, gypsy life with the readers of OnMilwaukee.com.
