Damn, that Market Spice tea from Pike Place in Seattle is good. I’m not a fan of the cost, but semi-sweetened with orange peels and a handful of bright spices — like cinnamon apple pie — it makes sipping a hot beverage feel like a spa massage for my mouth.
Something from a session earlier has been sticking with me, specifically an elevator metaphor I pulled out of thin air. Often, when I’m trying to understand something or create a framework, I make up imagery. Usually, it’s silly, and I end up shaking my head and chuckling at what I’ve just said.
Like, it sounds like you’re a snowman living in Las Vegas, but really you want to get back to Norway — is that right?
Or, it sounds like you’re hula-hooping while juggling knives on top of an active volcano — am I getting this?
I love imagery. Especially the fun, spontaneous kind.
Anyway — elevator.
I’d been thinking about why the word “safe” can sometimes trigger a nervous or panicked reaction in people. It made me reflect on how, when there is deep closeness in a relationship, sharing that level of vulnerability can feel like “basement level” — it’s deep, meaningful, rare, and often highly valued. Over time, two people might gradually meet each other in that space and sit there together.
And it can feel really good.
But sometimes, when one person names that space as “safe,” it doesn’t actually feel safe to the other. It can feel like a threshold has been crossed, an alarm bell goes off, and suddenly there’s an urge to leave the basement.
It was an interesting visual to consider in my own life: imagining myself on different floors of an elevator, and how different people, circumstances, or levels of trust can either draw me toward the basement or keep me hovering higher up.
I don’t know if this makes perfect sense, or if it’s even helpful. But I’ve been thinking about my “Self,” and how I might intentionally create environments, relationships, and activities that allow me to spend more time in that deeper, basement-level place.
Alright. That’s all for now.
Love, Jaclynn
Going On 40 