A few years ago I remember finding my son sitting straight up in bed in the middle of the night, eyes wide.
“What’s wrong? Nightmare?”
“Kraken,” he croaked.
I sighed and made a note to not let him play any more “Ocean Hunter” at the pizza place.
The Kraken is a mythological creature attributed to Norse sailors in the 13th century. (Read an interesting article about it on ABC News’ Science Blog by Ned Potter). It’s also the stuff of legend, pirate movies, video games and my son’s vivid imagination.
Since then, I’ve come to think of it as the stuff that haunts my own nightmares. Anxious thoughts. Aching worries.
Should I be pushing my child harder about his schoolwork?
(or on the opposite night) Am I pushing him too hard?
Is my husband happy with me?
Should I confront my friend about her behavior?
What are yours?
My son has since conquered his Kraken phobia. We talked it out. He watched several documentaries about collosal squid. He read books about mythical sea monsters. He tried calamari. And he invested enough quarters to demolish that evil beast on Ocean Hunter.
How do I conquer my own Kraken?
Like my son did, I take steps to control my fears. I talk with my family and friends and let them set me straight. I try to educate myself on the subject–is there any real basis for my fear? I pray about it and let God re-align my thoughts (Phillipians 4:6).
And then when I’ve done all that, I try to cut that silly kraken down to a manageable size. Whether that be with deep fat frying (calamari) or quarters… humor often helps take the edge off of my fears.
So, what is your Kraken? How do you battle the beast?
Speaking of dreams and nightmares–have you entered my blog contest to win a free copy of Davis Bunn’s new novel, Book of Dreams? Scroll back to Friday’s post to learn how. The contest ends Thursday at 12:00 pm Pacific Time.
“So, what is your Kraken?” you asked.
Since I have been known to be intimidated easily AND am shy AND fret about what others think, most of my sleepless nights have been filled with concern of what I said or did wrong to make people shy away from me. I’m not usually forward enough to ask so I stew instead.
One particular time, I got up the guts to start a ladies bible study group. I asked all the ladies that went to our church assembly so they’d all have the opportunity to join in, so no one would be left out. One lady flat told me without hesitation that she did not want to. Period. I took it personal and wondered what I did to make her so adamant that she didn’t want to come. Lost sleep over that one, but finally couldn’t take it and called her up to ask why. She said simply she had too much going on and it wasn’t anything against me. She even said it nice.
My husband tells me I read things into people that aren’t there. I just have to remember this lesson and face the “Kraken” head on and get the problem fixed rather than continue in the turmoil. :))
By the way, great article in Guideposts!
That sounds so much like me, Pamela. I have sometimes have pretend arguments in my head where I fill in what I *think* the other person is thinking. So silly and a waste of time and energy. Right?
I’m glad you enjoyed the Guideposts article. It was such a thrill to see it in print. 🙂