STOP & LISTEN

STOP! Just stop. Really. I know it is difficult. We live 25 hour lives, each and every day, in a 24 hour reality. There is so much to process. It is all just more than you can handle. So ….. just don’t handle it.

Give yourself a short burst of meditation. Take a precious moment of your life and live it just for you. Just you. It can be anywhere. It can be anytime. I am not talking about hours or days. Then nothing would get done. Not even minutes. Okay, maybe, but only a minute. Maybe a few. If you have the luxury of minutes, and being somewhere calming and peaceful, all the better. But how often do you give yourself a shot of you. A little piece of your life. Just for you. Embrace a sight. Take a moment to really see something. Look at detail. Experience a sound. Listen. Everything has a song. Even silence has its own melody. A smell. Breathe deeply. A touch. Feel. When is the last time you took a moment to absorb a flower. Not take a picture. No selfies with the flower. Not to analyze. Just experience the joy of a wonder of nature. The richness of the color, the intricacies and complexities of the petals and leaves. If you are lucky, an aroma that you have overlooked a hundred times before. Or perhaps the whisper of the wind in the trees, and the caress against your face as it travels from wherever it has been to wherever it is going on its own sojourn. The sounds of the birds, and the bees, maybe a cricket or the creaking of a tree, dancing in that very same breeze. Maybe you don’t think you have access to these things, but you probably do, even in the cities. But even there, there is wonder and beauty. A bell chiming in the distance, music wafting from any direction, a myriad of sounds, and scents and sights. Look for one that interests you. Intrigues you. Lose yourself for that moment in time. Experience nothing else, and your soul will thank you for it. Your day will be better for it. Do this whenever you can and your perspective will change. Your priorities will adjust, just that little bit, to make sure you can find another moment such as this to make tomorrow better as well. All the obstacles on your path will seem just a little bit smaller, and possibly the realization that they were not obstacles at all, but simply another challenge, another experience, another adventure. Not something to avoid, but something to embrace, overcome and resolve. Another step taken.
At times, it is difficult to make life changing decisions. And maybe you can. But usually, they take time and effort. Motivation and resolve. And the stars have to line up to let it happen. But these small moments of life, they are another matter. They are completely under your control. Anyone can do it, and almost at any time. Sometimes they can take place in the blink of an eye. If you are paying attention. So pay attention. I won’t say don’t fret the big stuff. It’s big stuff so somebody has to fret about it. If it’s your stuff I guess you are the one that needs to fret. And you will. And you should. And it will be resolved in time. But until then, you are in control of those little moments that can make the difference between a bad day and a good one. A good day and a great one. There is nothing that is better than having a great day. Put a string of them together and what do you have? A great life. And that is what we are all looking for.
So Stop. Listen. And top it off with a smile!