The Funky Spaces

Sometimes, we are just in a funk.

There isn’t anything that has happened necessarily to cause the funk. There’s nothing you can pinpoint. Maybe the motivation to get up and get moving isn’t quite there? Or maybe there’s an apathy toward things you would otherwise be excited for? Whatever it is, you just feel it.

I’ve been in that space off and on for the past week. Nothing is wrong. I’m just feeling a little off and not quite like myself. So what do I do when I’m in a weird space? Write about it, of course. Because sometimes we need to normalize the funky stuff – don’t you think? Sometimes, we need to be able to say I’m feeling a little off today.

And in admitting that, I think we are giving others in our life permission to do the same. Instead of the usual, “How are you?” followed by “I’m good, and you?”, we can say “I’m not feeling the best today” and hope that starts a meaningful conversation that might help us to figure out what is going on that is making us feel the funk.

Personally, I think I am just a little tired and stretched a bit too thin. Or maybe it’s the reality that the kids are getting closer and closer to being out and on their own. Or maybe it’s the financial demands that seem to be growing and the fact that the washing machine just went out and the laundry is piling and we need to start to visit colleges for my oldest and some anxiety about how it’s going to all work out is starting to set in.

Whatever it may be, that is where I am this morning. So, if you find yourself feeling a little off, know you aren’t alone and that there is nothing wrong with admitting that. We all have those days sometimes. Life is a beautiful mixture of highs and lows and a whole lot of in-between.

Sometimes, I think the funky spaces are gifts.

Personally, I know the funky spaces help me to grow. They cause me to pause and to question what is going on that is contributing to me feeling this way, and what do I possibly need to change in my life? They reorient me and remind me to lift my head up and look beyond my circumstances to God above.

The funky spaces are usually a precursor to something positive. To a change that needs to take place.

I just need to let myself go there. To sit in the funk and feel it and not try to numb it or push it away, but to be present in it and use it to propel me forward toward better things.

We all get a little funky sometimes, and that’s okay. Sometimes, it’s necessary. Sometimes, it can even be good. We just need to let ourselves feel it and to know we aren’t alone in it. In fact, I bet there are quite a few people in our lives in this very moment who may be feeling something similar.

So, if you’re feeling a little funky today, know you are in good company. This is just a part of living – and this too shall pass.