How did an old mechanical stapler give me so much peace of mind?

What started as a simple project of changing the lighting of my front porch ended up being an awakening on how I could best deal with my personality quirks.

I should have known better. One small idea always turns into a bigger project than expected. It was on a warm afternoon last summer while I was relaxing on my porch, when it suddenly occurred to me that the distribution of lighting could use some attention. What should have been an easy and quick task, turned into a full week long porch renovation session. The walls received a fresh coat of white paint, furniture was rearranged and bohemian style curtains were placed to add a free spirit touch. 

The last part of the project was to set up the lighting. The 150 foot string lights needed to be repositioned to better distribute the light. Initially, the project was mildly annoying and tiring. Particularly as I was rehanging the lights, my only instrument being an old mechanical stapler. The stapler was very hard to use with one hand while holding the long string lights with the other hand.  After trying different options and methods to complete the task I realized that I was becoming more than exasperated.

I decided to stop, breathe and enlist the help of my husband, Steve. Otherwise I just knew I was going to end up smashing the stapler against the window.

I could not believe his reaction when I politely and emphatically requested his help.  He simply  declined. I was baffled to see that Steve did not understand the importance and urgency of the situation!

I noticed that he seemed very frustrated with me and refused to help me. However he offered the best solution ever! He agreed that after finishing the project he was working on we could go to the hardware store to buy an electric stapler making it much easier to attach the lights.

What a fantastic compromise! While I waited, I decided to pour  my energy and enthusiasm into another task. It is simply impossible to stay still while there are so many other quests that require my attention. So I decided to crochet a doily curtain while I waited for that much anticipated “magic stapler”.  

Being able to sit down and focus my attention and energy to a  crochet pattern had a surprisingly pleasant and positive effect on my psyche. My mind became quiet and calm. I noticed that my thinking was more clear and organized. I was finally able to recognize  how anxious and impulsive I had been.  I started reflecting on other situations in the past when I  became inpatient, restless, impulsive or angry. I tend to immerse myself in a task and have a hard time standing still.

I then had the clarity to process Steve’s reaction and the reason for his frustration with me. I apologized and thanked him for his help and patience. We had a long conversation and we both understood the reason for our actions or emotions. Steve explained that he was working on his own time sensitive chores while I demanded for immediate help. As for me, I was hyper focused with my project. 

At one point in my life, a clinician strongly suggested that I get tested for ADHD but I opted to not take action since I thought it was not necessary to address it and decided to disregard it. However, I found that knowing and honoring the reason behind my thoughts, emotions or actions have helped me understand myself better and become more proactive in finding coping mechanisms. 

A few years back while researching personality types and aromatherapy I came across a personality  test that I found fascinating and honestly quite insightful. According to the Enneagram Institute there are 9 different personality types. It is explained that one person may  have traits of more than one personality type. However,  there is one personality type that is the most predominant. 

I took the test a couple of years ago and I found out that my personality type is “The investigator” According to the teachings of the Enneagram Institute The investigators are  insightful, intellectual, curious and perceptive. However they also could face challenges, such as hyperactivity and tendency towards nihilism and isolation. I was amazed by the spot on results that I decided to mix essential oils to honor my strengths while helping cope with my challenges.   

This is how I was inspired to create a Personality Series to celebrate each of the 9 Enneagram personality types.

I designed the first blend of the series which is for the personality  Type One (The Reformer).  Type Ones have a strong sense of purpose, they are ethical, conscientious, perfectionists and idealists. They could also be self righteous, intolerant, inflexible. The oils that were carefully chosen were to calm the mind and heart and to inspire you to love yourself and others.

Would you like to know what  this beautiful blend smells like?  I would like to invite you to follow my Personality Series which consists of 9 aromatherapy blends released each month. 

If you would like to find out what your primary personality type is and enjoy the aromatherapy blend that I created, you can take the Enneagram personality test. 

Or simply just enjoy what each blend has to offer.  

Peace on

Monica