Is everyone in a bad mood?

Kinda feels that way, no?

Hello my gorgeous GGs,

I just got back from my annual Disneyland retreat with my sister and I’d LOVE to tell you it was perfect and joyful and the best time ever. But it was not. Don’t get me wrong, we were so excited to go! We even got our dad to splurge on a room at the Grand Californian (a GG reader encouraged me!). But on Day One, hour one, I came down with some kind of stomach virus which was so painful that the hotel let us check in early so I could just get in bed. Day Two, I felt well enough to hobble through the park but I noticed, for the first time, how…inconsiderate people can be. How they can shove and push and scream and…how they don’t thank the dude pouring popcorn into their commemorative $29.00 bucket. It was the first time in my 14 years + of annual trips that Disneyland did not seem like the happiest place on earth.

Greetings from Star Wars. Please note I had to buy draw-string pants at the park because I was so uncomfortable in my normal leggings. YUP! It was a banner year!

I think the main reason my experience at Disneyland semi-sucked was my illness, but I think there’s another, larger reason that I’m sensing all around me. People just seem to be in a bad mood, generally, and they’re taking it out on others. A few examples:

• I’ve noticed that in LA in particular, people have become much worse and mean drivers. Good luck to anyone trying to merge lanes! You can’t!

• I saw an older lady struggle to move a light piece of furniture in my lobby. There were MANY PEOPLE in the lobby. MANY capable hands and no one thought to help her (of course I did because #hero complex).

• I was at a dinner and someone asked me why the guy I’m seeing is still single. “If he’s that old and still single, what’s wrong with him?” First off, just, what a mean question about another human. Like…Ew. But second off, I TOO AM THAT AGE. I TOO AM SELF-COUPLED. She didn’t have the self-awareness to realize she was saying there was something wrong with me too!

Anyway, I was almost relieved when I came across an article in The New York Times describing the same phenomenon I’m seeing, “Why Is It A Surprise That America Is Gloomy After a Devastating Pandemic?” Oh yeah, maybe we are in a bad mood because bad things happened and are happening? I thought.

Remember when one million people in America died? Remember when you worried that by seeing your parents, you might kill them? Remember when the country was divided by the super cautious and those who felt their liberties were being infringed upon and there was such vitriol that it tore us apart and we called one another evil? Remember all of that? And how we never resolved anything? And then, one day we were just sorta “over it,” without discussion, without grieving, without anyone teaching us how to interact in public again (I still don’t know and can barely get dressed). And as soon as we reached the “over it” phase, about another million bad things happened. So, yeah: it would be SUPER weird if many of us weren’t in a bad mood. I mean, it’s kinda more shocking that we are doing as well as we are.

And so, with this week’s prompts, I’m hoping that we can forgive our bad moods a little, find a little compassion for ourselves, and maybe even a little love for those around us.

This week’s prompts: Let’s Deal with This Bad Mood

Please read all of the prompts because you might want to spread them out over a few days. This week might also take you a little longer than normal, but I found this very soothing and eye-opening.