How many of us are guilty of sleep walking through our lives? If someone were to ask me if I wish my life away, I would say, "Of course not, I try to live my life to the fullest." But if I actually look at my day, there are always the times that I wish it were the weekend already or can the kids please stop talking already! I've been realizing that if I truly want to be happy, I need to find a way to be happy in the moment.
Being happy in the moment is not a natural thing for me. I had a pretty bad childhood and the way I got through it was to look to the future. Everytime things would get bad, I would tell myself that it was only temporary and that I needed to get through it to get to the good part of my life. That became a pattern for me throughout life. I've always been focused on the future. Now as I approach 40, I have started to be jealous of people just starting things, new school year, college, career, marriage. I realized that I am living a pretty charmed life right now and yet I am still wishing it away.
It's great to have goals and to plan for the future, but we also need to be happy in the present. The last few weeks I have really tried to enjoy the present tense of my life. When the kids try to talk to me, I put the book down or turn off the TV and listen. When I get free time, I savor it. Even if I am just wasting my time on inane things, I am appreciative of having that free time. When I am at work, I am enjoying the people around me, not thinking of all the things I need to do later.
Here in Austin, TX, we have had one of the driest, hottest summers on record. Normally we have about 12 days of triple digit temperatures. This summer we have had 69 so far. This week a cool front came through and it will be only in the high 90s, and really cooling off at night for the first time in months. As I drove home from taking my daughter to school this morning with the windows open in the car, I didn't let myself think of the full day ahead of me and all I needed to accomplish. I just savored the cool breeze and enjoyed the bliss of the moment.
Monday, August 31, 2009
Monday, August 24, 2009
Light
I chose the name for this blog because the word light means many things to me. Whenever I visualize the connection with a higher spirit, it is always a beam of light. When I am happy, I feel light. When I want to ease my burden, I want to lighten my lode. Shed some light on the situation.
So I've now had a couple of weeks of being grateful for the little things in my life. Every night I go through my day in detail and give thanks for everything. I've been finding that I have these little pauses, though, when I get to the challenges of the day. I mean, come on, I'm not really very thankful for these challenges. Sometimes I can try really hard and come up with a way to be thankful for whatever gift I received from the challenge, but usually I can't see the gift yet. What I've chosen to do is to send light (or prayers, or energy) to those situations.
So for this week. if you are following along with me, have a time set aside to think about your day. My time is when I am getting ready to go to sleep. When you go through your day, along with being thankful for the little things, start sending light to the problem areas. Sometimes the light will be to help some one else along on their path. Sometimes it will be so that you can forgive yourself for an action or reaction. Sometimes you may not even know what you are trying to receive from the light, but trust me, it works anyway.
So I've now had a couple of weeks of being grateful for the little things in my life. Every night I go through my day in detail and give thanks for everything. I've been finding that I have these little pauses, though, when I get to the challenges of the day. I mean, come on, I'm not really very thankful for these challenges. Sometimes I can try really hard and come up with a way to be thankful for whatever gift I received from the challenge, but usually I can't see the gift yet. What I've chosen to do is to send light (or prayers, or energy) to those situations.
So for this week. if you are following along with me, have a time set aside to think about your day. My time is when I am getting ready to go to sleep. When you go through your day, along with being thankful for the little things, start sending light to the problem areas. Sometimes the light will be to help some one else along on their path. Sometimes it will be so that you can forgive yourself for an action or reaction. Sometimes you may not even know what you are trying to receive from the light, but trust me, it works anyway.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
New Blog - Gratitude
How original! I am starting a new blog!
I've been thinking lately, "What is it we all want out of life?" We all want to be happy and healthy. For me, that means being happy and healthy in all areas of my life: physical, emotional, intellectual, social, spiritual, professional, financial, family, and friends. Of course being happy and healthy may look different for all of us at various times in our lives. Since I think best when I am expressing my feelings, I decided to start this blog. Hopefully, as you follow my ramblings, you too can focus on what makes you happy and healthy. I am hoping to bring light to my life and yours. So here it goes...
I think one of the most important first steps to take toward enlightment is gratitude. I really don't think we can be happy until we are grateful for what we have. A couple of years ago when The Secret came out, everybody was talking about seeing yourself with what you want instead of complaining about what you don't have. My friend and I were trying to figure out what all the fuss was about. We both had been doing something similar to that for years, but she told me that one difference the movie talked about was that we should say thank you all the time. I find myself remembering that every time I feel disconnected to the grace around me, every time I start feeling sorry for myself for what I don't have or when I can't see that I am moving towards what I want. It never fails, when I remember to be thankful for what I do have, I feel a greater connection to the world around me, my spirits lift, and I am happier with life. It's hard to believe that it is that simple.
I often tell my kids that God doesn't make the bad things in our life happen, he allows them, but he doesn't like them. So when something bad happens, God gives us little gifts to make up for it. The bigger the hardship, the bigger the gift. So, very night before I go to bed, I have been taking time to thank God (or the Great Spirit or the Universe) for everything good thing that happened that day. I give thanks for all the gifts, from the tiniest (hitting all green lights when you are late) to the biggest. Give it a try for a week and feel the magic.
I've been thinking lately, "What is it we all want out of life?" We all want to be happy and healthy. For me, that means being happy and healthy in all areas of my life: physical, emotional, intellectual, social, spiritual, professional, financial, family, and friends. Of course being happy and healthy may look different for all of us at various times in our lives. Since I think best when I am expressing my feelings, I decided to start this blog. Hopefully, as you follow my ramblings, you too can focus on what makes you happy and healthy. I am hoping to bring light to my life and yours. So here it goes...
I think one of the most important first steps to take toward enlightment is gratitude. I really don't think we can be happy until we are grateful for what we have. A couple of years ago when The Secret came out, everybody was talking about seeing yourself with what you want instead of complaining about what you don't have. My friend and I were trying to figure out what all the fuss was about. We both had been doing something similar to that for years, but she told me that one difference the movie talked about was that we should say thank you all the time. I find myself remembering that every time I feel disconnected to the grace around me, every time I start feeling sorry for myself for what I don't have or when I can't see that I am moving towards what I want. It never fails, when I remember to be thankful for what I do have, I feel a greater connection to the world around me, my spirits lift, and I am happier with life. It's hard to believe that it is that simple.
I often tell my kids that God doesn't make the bad things in our life happen, he allows them, but he doesn't like them. So when something bad happens, God gives us little gifts to make up for it. The bigger the hardship, the bigger the gift. So, very night before I go to bed, I have been taking time to thank God (or the Great Spirit or the Universe) for everything good thing that happened that day. I give thanks for all the gifts, from the tiniest (hitting all green lights when you are late) to the biggest. Give it a try for a week and feel the magic.
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