The Year of Mud
This year felt like being in the mud.
At first, it happened by accident -
like being splashed by a passing car.
It was small, simple.
Annoying, sure, but manageable.
But then came another car…
And another one…
And another.
Each one splashing me more and more.
Until, suddenly, there I was.
My clothes were covered in dirt.
My hands and feet sticky with a thick layer of it.
Even my face was smeared with mud.
It was everywhere.
And it was frustrating.
To say I was annoyed would be an understatement.
It got under my skin, itching and irritating me
until I was furious.
So I clenched my fists and growled,
“Fine! Fine! Fine!”
Like a wild woman plotting her revenge
against the Universe,
I thought…
“If you want me covered in mud,
if you want me buried in this rubbish…
Fine. I’ll show you!”
So I ran to the biggest puddle of guck
I could find and leapt in -
no hesitation, no time to second-guess.
“Just watch me!
I’m done being splashed by cars.
If I need to be in mud, I’ll do it myself.”
I tossed and turned,
rolling until every inch of me was covered in muck.
Nothing but dirt. Nothing but earth.
And then, I noticed something.
The more I covered myself in mud,
the less irritating it became.
I hardly even noticed it.
When you’re already drenched in it,
having more mud doesn’t make a difference.
There was nothing left to fight.
Nothing to fix.
The mud became… just mud.
It stopped being a problem.
It was actually okay for me to be in it.
And at one point I was even considering
building mud castles with it.
But that’s when I knew…
it was time to get up,
wash it all off,
and carry on with my day.
And when another car came along
and splashed me again?
Well, I’d seen worse.
So I just shrugged, and got back to what I was doing.
If your year felt like it was filled
with unexpected challenges,
I see you.
And I want you to know something -
You are amazing.
Well done on surviving this year!
You are a mud warrior.
You deserve a trophy with your name on it,
you beautiful human being.
I’m so proud of you.
With love,
Elina
