Living the Present

I love walking with my friend, Rachelle. Not only does my body feel better afterwards but more often than not so does my spirit. We talk about our day, kids, family, work whatever but we also talk about the deeper stuff. Both of us suffer from the negative self-talk, feeling inadequate, frustrated, etc. You name it. So instead of feeling like I need to put on a perfect face and act as though life is fine and dandy, I can share with her my imperfections and she can share hers with me. In the process of sharing these things, I almost always feel less. Less frustrated. Less depressed. Less helpless. Less at a loss as to what to do with my world. Today was no exception.

I had one of those “Ah Ha” moments where you say something insightful without even realizing it. We were talking about a book I am reading which then turned into a small talk about whether or not acceptance of a situation means settling. I don’t think it does. I think accepting where you are in life simply means that you know this is where you are now but not necessarily where you will be in the future but you allow yourself to enjoy and live in the moment. This is not something that I do. Instead I see how I want something to be in my future and when something changes the image I have created, I desperately miss what hasn’t even happened. Now this is where the insightful words come in – I am sure this is not exactly how I said it but the meaning is the same: We are too worried about what we may miss in the future that it holds us back from living and enjoying the present.

As one of my Project Me goals, I am going to live and enjoy the present. The future is still out there but it hasn’t yet been defined. I will accept my present life and enjoy the moments that are now, while keeping an open mind about the future. I hope whoever is reading this does or will do the same.