By Mark Antony Rossi

What are your viable options when having a bad day? Some take a deep breath and say a small prayer. Some bury their head in a dark beer in a darker bar. Some rant and rave to strangers on Facebook. I’ve done all three and a few more I’m not telling you about.

Sorry to report: there isn’t a cookie-cutter answer. They say how you react to a bad day makes the difference between relief and restoration. But I’m not sold on that quaint boring thinking. A bad day can be a series of flops, failures and freaky happenings aggressively resistant to meditative phrases, wise maxims and veggie burgers. I love aromatherapy, however funky liquids are not going to rewrite a financial forecast. Nor is burning incense which masks foul odors yet cannot deal with the source of decay.

A good scream in the parking lot complete with hand gesture to chase birds trying to steal your French fries is a first start. Prayer has its place and I would never minimize its impact but there are moments where profanity feels like medicine stored deep in the back of the pharmacy. I discovered two miles running at night is a temporary reprieve from the rattle of train-wreck recall. It’s hard to focus on your problems when struggling to inhale oxygen. Yet I admit this is probably just a dangerous form of denial.   If only I could play the guitar and strum away the corrosive blues of a new moon. If only.

Does any of this to and fro heal a bad day? Heck no! The rhyme and riddle of the universe escapes us most when dodging darkness and dilemma. But I won’t be one more complainer. I refuse to add to the hopelessness too many people secretly carry like concealed weapons. I will not deify stupidity. I will drink to a better day. And wake up tomorrow with a headache. Only a fool will base his happiness on the quality of the moment.

About the Author: Mark Antony Rossi is a poet, playwright and author of the bioethics volume “Dark Tech” now available from Amazon. His most recent plays have been produced in Liverpool and New York.

http://ethical-stranger.webnode.com/ 

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