Blueberries

This past weekend I went with my family to a farm that had pick-your-own blueberries. The weather was nice– sunny but not too warm and a gentle breeze– and we quickly got to picking. Now, in my opinion, picking blueberries is fairly easy compared to other fruits (strawberries and blackberries for example). But it still takes a lot of time and effort and energy to fill a gallon bucket with blueberries.

We filled 4 gallon buckets. It took 2 hours. It got hot, and the bugs started buzzing around and bothering us. There were spiders and creepy crawly insects amongst the blueberries, and we got tired of picking after awhile. But I kept reminding myself of all the delicious blueberry jam (my absolute favorite!) I’d be able to make, the bags of frozen berries for smoothies, the loaves of breakfast bread and muffins…. Whenever my energy would wane or I’d have thoughts of quitting early, I’d refocus myself on the end result– all those yummy treats I’d been looking forward to for months.  And that would motivate me to continue working just a little bit longer.

What does this have to do with mental health?

Well, isn’t the same true of life? And therapy, in particular. It can be really hard and difficult to do the meaningful work in therapy. There will be times when you want to quit, when you wonder if you’ll ever get through the problem, when your energy and motivation start to wane. Those are the times when you need to refocus your thoughts on the bigger picture– the ultimate prize of resolving those difficult issues, growing and becoming a better version of your Self. It’s perfectly ok to sit down and take a break every once in awhile, but don’t ever quit entirely.

Those blueberry muffins will taste that much better knowing I stayed the course and picked them all without stopping early. What can you accomplish if you don’t quit?  If you keep up your motivation?  Think of the possibilities!

If you’re curious about how music therapy might help, contact me anytime.  I’m always happy to answer questions!