Living in London has its perks, it is after all a city steeped in history, rife with culture and not lacking in charm. That said, it is also a highly overpopulated, intensely busy, and in many ways cluttered in a way that is conducive of stress and frustration: especially to an anxious mind. Living in London has made me have to face up to some home truths about emotion and taught me some invaluable lessons surrounding mood. Through working at finding a way to master my moods I’ve come across a simple but constructive understanding of mood and come to know how it shapes not only our short term outlook, but also plays a lead role in the moulding of our future.

Consider this dog that I snapped in Prague earlier this year, what do you see?

If seeing this whilst in a good mood, I would surely find the resting dog adorable and be interested in petting it and seeing its tail wag as it got excited. In a negative mindset however, I’d notice how the dog seems to be alone, probably has no owner, perhaps the owner lived on the streets and has recently deceased and now the dog has no one and nothing and will probably perish slowly and painfully.

Mood.

Another go. This is a dessert that I made for myself recently.

In a good mood, I see a healthy and delicious treat that proves that I am a thin (yay) and happy individual. In a bad mood, I wonder what chemicals were used to make the fruit grow faster, and more plentifully, and consider whether these will damage me: Me being an obese and thereby ugly waste of space.

Mood.

Mood impacts our very perspective of all that is around us. Moods shape whether we see disappointments or challenges, failures or opportunities, and options or closed doors. It’s all pretty self explanatory, but when it comes down to when we are in ‘moods’, it’s hard to understand the impact that they are having on our real-time outlook.

My solution is simple. Everything has a potential set of emotions attached to it, it is our choice to decide which ones we pick. When in a bad mood, accept it for what it is and then choose to no longer be in it. With practice it becomes second nature.

(Photos – Eli Woodbine – London / Prague 2015)