Ebb And Flow

“You and I are like cats. We like being with people, on our own terms.” Someone said this to me one day, and I laughed at how succinctly accurate that is. ⁠

“Eliza, you are ALL about people.” I am told this quite often. This statement is also accurate. ⁠

But here’s the thing. Until recently, I haven’t been able to reconcile the two. In fact, I have fought against the former. There has to be something wrong with me. This need to limit my exposure to other humans must make me anti-social. ⁠

Humans are pack animals. We thrive and survive through community! Not this gal. For every one hour spent engaging with others, I need at least three hours to myself. ⁠

Ebb and flow keeps coming up as a message for me. So I sat, pen poised over my art journal, and asked what my own ebb and flow looks like. ⁠

What came up was degrees of engagement! Full on in person interaction, a step removed like this storytelling, to full withdrawal, then a gentle flow back to full on interaction. ⁠
⁠
A cat says “I am here to interact” then snaps to “piss off”, and that was how I was behaving. I appreciate this decisiveness in cats, but it left me feeling icky. ⁠

I have now embraced “I am like an ocean. I like being with people, based on my own ebb and flow.” ⁠

Ahhh, now that feels good.⁠