As the heating in my car swathes my bare feet, I let it comfort me and enjoy the warmth. I need to wind down on these days when I have to make the long trip to Brentford in rush hour traffic. Getting stressed is not an option and the traffic will not move any faster. Even if you take into account roadworks and other delays there is no telling how long these journeys will take. At points when the car comes to a standstill, I take in a few slow deep breaths and realise that this might not be a good idea. Breathing in car fumes was not what the relaxation guides meant when they talked about meditation and suchlike.
The topic on the radio switches from Brexit to the TSB bank’s switch over chaos to social media and it’s associated mental health issues. The media is full of grim news just like the lingering grey clouds. They say we need to socialise to be happy and then recently the media is all about mental health issues brought on by excessive cyberspace interaction.
Yesterday I came across an expression, ‘associate energy’ and about how moods can be infectious. How people can infect their associates with their mood swings. This is nothing new, it was just reaffirming what we already know and giving it a name. ‘This infectiousness is known as associate energy, so named because it refers to the energy you get – or are drained of – by associating with others.’ Their answer to the solution was quite simple. ‘You should associate with the people you want to be like’.
Do I interact with those I want to be like? Do they bring the best out of me? Do I bring the best out of them? Anyway that is enough thoughts for the day. I switch the radio to a music station.
The slow pace also means I have time to admire the flowers which now inhabit the verges of the roads. Wild flowers tastefully planted in such a way that the colourful display is indeed a feast for the eyes. The red poppy flowers gently sway in the breeze as they tower above the yellow, purple and white flowers. Further along the road there are purple flowers arranged in between green foliage of different shapes and sizes. The arrangement compliments the wooden fence which lines this part of the road.
‘Grenade’ by Bruno Mars comes on the radio. A song with lyrics I never paid much attention to till a three year old Thomas started singing it one day. “I’d catch a grenade for you, Throw my head on a blade for you, I’d jump in front of a train for you”. Not a song a three old should be singing, but it amazed me that a young Thomas heard the words when he heard the song, whereas to me it was just music with random words. I have a lot to learn, be it from a three year old Thomas as he was then or a two year old Lakshmi as she is now. The joy with which she goes about her daily routines. The infectious joy-fullness that she spreads. In fact all the people I associate with have qualities that I aspire to and hope that one day will rub off on me as well. And so the answer to my questions were yes, I do associate with people I like to be like, and most do bring out the best in me. Whether I return the favour, I am not entirely sure.
