Learning to simply be and enjoy each moment!

"Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow has enough has enough of its own worries. Today has enough trouble of its own" Matthew 6:34

“You've got this life and while you've got it, you'd better kiss like you only have one moment, try to hold someone's hand like you will never get another chance to, look into people's eyes like they're the last you'll ever see, watch someone sleeping like there's no time left, jump if you feel like jumping, run if you feel like running, play music in your head when there is none, and eat cake like it's the only one left in the world!” 

― C. JoyBell C.

After the recent medical issues this summer, I was told by my cardiologist to read a few books on relaxation and meditating. While I started and found the two books he recommend were just not for me, I did skim the books and discovered a few things that are useful. 

I am not a meditating kind of person, I just can't sit still or focus on something (or nothing in order to meditate) for more than a few minutes...ok, seconds. Which is the problem, and the reason I ended up in a cardiologist office being told to RELAX! But after skimming the books I did find that I, and most moms, are far too busy trying to keep everything in order that we do not stop and just take in and "live" in the moment. Not meaning to be careless and live moment to moment, but to actually "live" and experience each moment. 

As parents and a society as a whole, most of us spend far too much time planning for the future or living in the past that we don't focus our attention on today or right now. We spend much of our time thinking about when, what if, and someday. So much so that often we don't truly enjoy these precious moments we are given...right now! 

As parents, I think it worse. Not truly enjoying this day effects more than just us! It affects our children and spouses as well. As a mom, I know this is true for myself. I often get so caught up in trying to keep things clean, schedules on track, homeschool school lessons ready, homeschool fun club planned and active, cub scouts actives lined up, doctor and therapy appointments set and kept, household chores done, and anything else that comes up, in check according to how I think it should be done. But spending so much time and energy on everything else, drastically takes precious time away from the most important things in my life...God and my family. 

I am slowly learning, and relearning that it's ok to say no and to not pile my plate so high with commitments that I can't even breath myself. I still typically have too much going on and I still catch myself saying yes to things I shouldn't. But I am getting better, and slowly finding it easier to say no to others and yes more often here at home. And home is where the focus needs to be! 

Anyway, after skimming through the books, I have tried to make more of an effort to 

truly "be" in the moment that is now. Whether it be playing with the kids, really focusing on hubby, or spending time on myself, I'm trying to stop and put everything else out of my mind and really be there and enjoy that moment. God has given us moments we will never have again, and to think that I am not fully taking those in and seeing the blessing that they are, hurts and makes me mad. 

So, I don't have some new complicated plan to enjoy life and my family more, I am simply trying to take things as they come and actually LIVE each day and each moment one at a time! 

Life is not about tomorrow, next week, or even 5 minutes from now! Life is about right 

now, right here! No one is promised tomorrow! A lesson we all know far too well, yet forget most of the time.

“We must be willing to let go of the life we have planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us.” 

― E.M. Forster