@WastingAsparagus

good questions! not sure how to answer them

for me, the simple / basic things are what works best, i think. that's probably at least half due to my depression and length of time battling it. i am no longer able to look at the future. it's just day to day and week to week. because of that, i don't know if things will improve or not. it would suck if they didn't but it is as it will be. whether things improve or not, my faith will still be there!

next.... music is the sound of my soul and blood in my heart! roughly 22 years ago, i made the decision that i was only going to listen to Christian music - nothing else! and since i didn't live in a big city near Christian radio stations, my cd collection was born! it hasn't stopped over the years and is now up over 150!! Christian music plays in my head and i sing along! i believe there are reasons why i get random songs that pop into my head at various times. for example, a few months ago i woke up and had a song in my head that i hadn't heard in years (and it was over ten years old). the song was "He Will Carry Me" by Mark Schultz.
my faith through Christian music has been the only constant over the years!

and so if i combine the two, i get this 'voice' or tune in my head with a reminder just like the one from this song:
"take a breath, smile and say, right here right now i'm okay, because the cross was enough" !!