Life’s Precious Little Moments.
I remember when my oldest daughter was having a hard morning and was highly emotional on this particular day. My youngest daughter needed to be fed, diaper changed and readied for a nap. As I was rushing around the house like Michael Keaton in Mr. Mom, I felt an inner stress of having many tasks to do for the day and they were not getting done fast enough. Have you ever experienced that feeling of busyness? So many things to do, such little time?
While I was changing my daughters diaper, I took in a deep breath. Suddenly I realized how anxious I had been trying to get as many things done as possible; so much so that I could not take even a moment to enjoy what was right in front of me. In the moment I realized this, I had two words spontaneously float into my mind: Little moments. Just then, my daughter looked up at me as if to show me why these words were coming to me. She flashed a four tooth smile and all of a sudden, there was this quiet, dear, priceless moment. A “little moment.”
I began thinking of all these little moments I miss being trapped in a busy, anxious, have to get things done mode. What are little moments to me? The moments that can be easily skipped if we are too busy to stop and notice them.
Let’s face it. Life can feel busy. Because of the various technologies and having much of the world at our fingertips, it can be all too easy to be distracted from ourselves and our inner world. It’s common to focus on the big things in life – at least what we put our attention on to make them big – and miss all of these small moments that are so important.
As you sit reading this, your heart is beating without any sort of stress or worry that it will be done. Our bodies seem to have a natural flow, wisdom, and intelligence that doesn’t need us showing it how to live. Becoming aware of this can perhaps create a moment right now if you allow it.
Once the diaper was on and I was rocking her to sleep in the chair, I was calm enough to enjoy the activity I was doing in a present and appreciative manner. Then a funny thing happened: I became less stressed and the feeling of anxiousness and having to get a million things done subsided and gave way to an inner peace.
When I took the time and brought in awareness to acknowledge the very moment I was in, I discovered a truth that I had been missing that day: We are as busy as we choose to be, but never too busy to enjoy the moment that we are in. That is a choice.
That particular day I was choosing to be overtaken by the busyness, stress, and having to get things done, all of which clouded what was most important: Right now. This moment. My daughter was probably looking at me all morning wondering why I was acting the way I was because in her world, time and getting things done do not exist yet.
What if we lived our lives more in that way? Appreciating right now and being aware of all the little moments? I have tested it out. So have my clients.
The conclusion: Little Moments = Big Rewards
Give yourself a chance to slow down this holiday season and appreciate the precious moments. To do that you may have to remind yourself that everything in the course of your day is a choice, and you make them thousands of times each day. If you find that you are not liking the energy you are feeling, ask yourself, “What am I choosing right now?” If you don’t like the results of where your attention is being focused, choose to focus on something different. Little moments are happening all the time. It is up to you to become aware of them. Become aware of these precious moments and be rewarded big time.
Happy Holidays!
