All the feels

Anger. Irritation. Sadness. Engagement. Chagrin. Satisfaction. Pride. Possibility.

As a researcher, I’m interested in how emotion influences communication. When I’m angry, how do I communicate differently than when I’m sad? Or happy? Or bored? Or smug? In turn, how do I respond to others who are mad/sad/surprised, etc?

Often, these questions are theoretical. For instance, I’ve been analyzing data that I gathered in airports across the country over the last few years. I’m examining closely how people communicate when they’re nervous, angry, bored, scared, or irritated in airport security, and what repercussions stem from emotion-filled interaction.

Sometimes, these communication questions emerge from visceral experience. Like this weekend’s gamut of feelings due to a number of personal and professional events that bounced my emotional barometer around sadness, joy, anger and accomplishment, among others. It surprises me how intense the highs and lows can be, though why I’m surprised after all this time researching is anyone’s guess.

What I do know is that time spent in the garden is good for the soul and working out all sorts of feels.

The stages of removing this ginormous photinia shrub to make room for an inground veggie garden closely mirror my emotions this weekend: Anger, irritation, sadness, engagement, chagrin, satisfaction, pride and possibility. Stay tuned for garden glory shots later this week!

xoxo,
shawna

NaBloPoMo May 2015
May 1– To selfie or not to selfie
May 2- Helping things grow