I am a little late, but Happy Mardi Gras! I know, Christmas, New Year, and Epiphany are over. Decorations are being taken down. However, the celebrations are not over! Mardi Gras season has begun.
Mobile, Alabama is said to have the oldest Mardi Gras celebration in the United States. But, the Mobile parades begin almost three weeks after New Orleans parades, on January 26. New Orleans, Louisiana, probably the most popular Mardi Gras celebration city, began the party on January 6, which is traditional. The parades and parties will last until Mardi Gras Day, also known as Shrove Tuesday in the Anglican Church, which will be February 13 this year.
That means February 14, Valentine’s Day, will also be Ash Wednesday. Ash Wednesday is the beginning of Lent. In the Christian church, Lent is a season of abstinence from excess, fasting, prayer, and repentance leading up to Easter Sunday. In keeping with the JOMO (joy of missing out) theme of yesterday, I am looking forward to Lent.
Maybe it’s just me getting older. But, I don’t mind spending a quiet night at home. I lived in New Orleans as a preteen and teenager. Back then, going to parades on the weekends was fun. The people-watching was quite an education for the sheltered child I was then. I also enjoyed the noise, crowds, and the floats.
Now, several decades later, I don’t go into situations where there will be crowds and noise, casually. I need to prepare myself in advance and make an escape plan, just in case. My first panic attack came as a surprise to me.
I was a mother of four children under the age of eleven. My youngest daughter was in a stroller, while I was doing some Christmas shopping. She and I were waiting in line at a popular store to make some holiday purchases. All of a sudden, I felt the walls of the store begin to close in on me. I felt my heart begin to pound. Then, I felt sweaty and clammy at the same time. I could not get out of the store and into fresh air fast enough.
After that experience, I began to take steps to avoid feeling that way. My first step was to simply not go to crowded places. This didn’t work well, because I enjoyed (and still do) going out to activities where crowds gather. After realizing that avoidance of public places wasn’t practical, I began to pot strategies in place for dealing with crowds.
Step one is to find a pocket of isolation in a crowd, where I can feel air moving and don’t feel confined. Step two is to put people I trust between me and the rest of the crowd. If I am in a crowded restaurant, I try and sit with my back to the smallest portion of the room. In the event I am overwhelmed, I will “zone out” by reading books on my phone or doing four by four breathing. If I am in a crowded store, like Buc-Ee’s, I will imagine that I am in a protective bubble and just not get close to others.
These strategies have helped me navigate Walt Disney World, sporting events, and Dragon*Con, which is often referred to as “Nerdy Gras.” This gives me some freedom. I am not trapped at home by my fears.
In general, I prefer smaller and quieter outings or remaining at home. This is when JOMO occurs. I intentionally choose to be happy where I am.
If crowds are unavoidable, my companion of choice is my spouse. We have been together long enough that my spouse, almost by instinct, finds a good place for me to sit or stand. This consideration on her part, makes her my favorite traveling companion. Maybe, one day, we will be able to go to a Mardi Gras celebration in New Orleans – as soon as I can get over my last visit. It’s only been forty-one years since I was there last. Maybe by the time it’s an even fifty, I will be old enough to not care!
Journey with Monica 