If I could pass on a few important things to those I know and love this would be one of the top 10.
LIVE IN THE MOMENT... Really live in it. Take mental pictures of it. Relish it. Touch it, feel it in your heart, smell it, and taste it.. Live in it. Don't worry about what must be done next. Live in the moment.
I made a terrible mistake. How you say? In living focused solely on what I had planned would come in the future. I hurried through my teenage years wishing to be older. Then I wished and propelled myself into being married with children. My husband and I had a dream of moving to our special place in Ky. and building our home and lives there. (when he retired) only 15 short years away.
I spent my time planning and making plans for those far off days. I didn't pay very close attention to the ones I was living. The children had activities. It seemed like we bulled through them. Always hurrying to the next practice, the next game, the next thing on the list of things to do.
I never made literal lists. Maybe I should have. I had a plan, and it was for what was to come in the future. A move, building, growing, all plans for 15-20 years in the future. Not really enjoying each day. Now don't get me wrong. I did enjoy days. I enjoyed the activity, but there was always an underlying hope that we could hurry through this stuff so we can get on to the good stuff. I thought the good stuff was coming. I was wrong. That mundane boring daily stuff, that kid stuff.. That was the good stuff.
Oh my goodness how I miss it. I miss the homework. I miss the calls, I miss the rush of homecoming, football games, dances, practice, and games. I miss the talks about girlfriends and boyfriends and favorite actors and movies. I miss the 2 weeks of vacation between Christmas and New years when we would drag out the board games and play monopoly for hours. The movie nights with pizza and popcorn and Freddy on Elm st. or Chuckie, or Patrick Swayze and Dancing.
I miss the smell of apple cider at the orchard and pumpkin innards on carving night. The Rushing around looking for something to make the costume out of. The glue and glitter that had to be gotten to make a special gift for Christmas. Singing together in the car. The long car trips to KY. and the fun we had fishing.
Husband retired 15 yrs ago. Hear me. For 30 yrs. I have hustled and bustled through life so I could get on with my plan. I have had a wonderful life. I have loved it and wouldn't change any of it, But I so regret not living more in the moment. Unforeseen things happen and that 30 years of plans most likely will not take place. All that focus, all that time, not really wasted, but oh I wish I would have lived more in those moments in those days.
I do that more these days. A lot more. When I turned 50 I had a great awakening. I realized that I needed to stop and enjoy what was happening at that moment and not worry about what would come next. I'm not saying not to have a plan. I'm not saying you shouldn't think about the future. What I am saying is don't let your today get away without stopping and savoring it. I stop and smell flowers now. Yes, it might make me 2 minutes late, but the flower was worth it. I leave the dishes in the sink and visit with the company that came for coffee. I look for something in each day to remember and savor. Some days are full, some days, Not so much. I go to bed at night now and recall what wonderful things happened. I'm not letting any of it pass without my notice.
I read this on a favorite blog today. It really spoke to my heart. I hope it speaks to yours too.
"The biggest mistake I made [as a parent] is that I did not live in the moment enough. This is particularly clear now that the moment is gone, captured only in photographs.
There is one picture of my kids sitting in the grass on a quilt on a summer day, ages six, four, and one. And I wish I could remember what we ate, and what we talked about, and how they sounded, and how they looked when they slept that night. I wish I had not been in such a hurry to get on to the next thing: dinner, bath, book, bed. I wish I had treasured the doing a little more and the getting it done a little less." ~Anna Quin
Live in your moments. There are plenty of days ahead when you will need to remember those moments. They will be so much more important then your list of to do's.
The Trick is to
Enjoy Life
Don't wish away
your Days
Waiting
For Better Ones
Ahead...
~Marjorie Pay Hinkley~
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