My cup runneth over

So I'm back from Germany and in the midst of trying to unpack and write essays and revise three languages and tidy up and do the dishes and wash the clothes and answer emails I realized it would be appropriate to post about stress.

I would like to take this time to channel my high school PSHE lessons. Don't worry, this isn't about our changing bodies (but if you have any questions, I am reliably informed) - we were just shown a very accurate live demonstration of the difference between pressure and stress.

Imagine if you will, two plastic cups. These cups are ordinary, white and plastic. They are also the vessels of all knowledge.

They are me and you.

Yet there is a crucial difference between them.
One of the cups is pressured.
One of the cups is stressed.

Oh, how teenage me longed to know the secret of the cups and become a master of my own stress. Having spent time at home recently, I remember just how anxious and worried I used to be - yet I would describe my adult self as laid-back and care-free. Now, this might be because I went to university and was introduced to parties and pre-drinking and zero parental supervision. However, I like to think it was because I became a master of my own cup.

You see (prepare to be patronized here), the pressured cup contains some water. The level goes up and down depending on the situation but the water is contained within.

The stressed cup is overflowing; it cannot hold such a large amount of liquid. To avoid stress you need to watch the water level of your cup.

It's been a long time since I was worried about my GCSEs and whether or not Ewan McGregor would want to marry me but I still keep an eye on my cup. That's probably why I am writing this rather than my essay right now!

Here is a picture of the two cups that I made in paint.

And here is a cute picture of a hedgehog to help you keep your water level down.