monsters in the closet

my little 5 yr old monster, Jude London

I remember being very protective of Jude's little eyes when it came to anything scary on TV.  He was especially sensitive (as are we all) of things seen before bedtime.  One time he watched River Monsters with Joel and the following night, he was up 7-9 times SURE there were snakes all over his bed and in the 'water' in his room.

It took so much energy to console him.  His little mind was certain of what he saw. It took turning on the lights & showing him that there really was nothing to fear.

I find myself no different.  I believe something (for whatever reason) in my mind...allow it to take root & grow....and then all of a sudden, it's taken a form of its own, whether it's truth or not.  It's grown into a monster whose closet is my mind.

I guess we all do that - insecure about our work, our relationships, our abilities, etc.  Then, you have that moment when you wake up, turn on the lights, and see what is real and what is not.  I think it's always important to remember that our minds will play tricks on us.  We will go through periods where we can easily foster thoughts that are unhealthy.  Like a Mom tries to protect her son from seeing 'River Monsters' we must also protect ourselves from seeing the 'Life Monsters' that want to eat us up.

Be real.    See real.    Speak real.   I'm really learning this right now.