Bathtub and I

The Bathtub and I.

I must admit that when I place those two words “Bathtub” and “I” together in a sentence the thoughts tend to stray, but that’s not what I am going to type about.

I find that when I come to a road block in my thinking or a question I can’t answer. I want to take a nice hot bath. My intention usually isn’t to solve the problem but to understand what the problem is and to straighten out the kinks.

When it comes to a religious conversation between my husband and myself I can’t help but stumble around. I honestly can’t seem to process anything he says, nor do I study the topic. Religion and I aren’t the best of buds. That might have something to do with the way I grew up, but I drift.

After listening to Shawn tell stories for a while I’m more than a little confused and my head is hurting, but all I need to do is fill the tub with hot water and slid in. The water does the rest.

There is something to sitting alone in a bathroom and completely relaxed in hot water that gets the mind moving. The stories Shawn has twisted around in my head begin in make sense and even begin to play out in a movie fashion. Now most of the time I’m probably missing a vital point, but I begin to see a picture more clearly and so the next time he tells me the same story I’m closer to understanding him and seeing every detail that he sees. Or so I would like to think.

Another thing that makes me want to climb into a nice hot tub is writing. Writing is so much fun but can be stressful, hair pulling, and downright nerve raking. Whenever I come to a moment where I can’t figure what to do next I somehow manage to pull myself away from the screen--because at this point whatever I right I’ll want to undo later out of frustration--long enough to talk myself into a bath.

The vapors from the hot water work its way up my neck and releases the building pressure slowly. I don’t know how hot water can cool a person down, but it works. And man I love it if you play some hard rock in the background that really gets the mind thinking. Picturing different scenes to your book to match whatever song is playing in the background. Everyone should try it at least once.

But again, I may not come to an answer to my writer block, but I can ease my panic about what to write. I can spend several minutes focusing on what I have accomplished other than what is stumping me.

And my third reason for seeking comfort in the allusive bathtub would be for pain relief. Nothing says “Go away back pain!” like a bathwater at about a hundred two degrees. ^^

There are many other reasons to relax in a tub, but those are my main ones. Please share with me yours and keep it safe. Thank you for reading my thoughts of the night.

B. Franklin