I was having “one of those days.” There was a spider in my shower…and of course I didn’t spot the creepy-crawler until I was in there with it. There was no end to the mountain of work on my desk, I added 3 items for every one that I crossed off of my To Do List, and my eyes kept closing without my permission. I helped a woman who couldn’t figure out how to use the gas pump (really??), and then she totally cut me off in traffic. I cried in my car on the way to Starbucks, because I was so overwhelmed.
And when I got back to my inbox, with the caffiene-filled Fru-Fru Mochalattejavadrink now coursing happily through my veins, I read the monthly e-newsletter from a local non-profit.
And the first article hit home.
In a nutshell, the author of the newsletter had this to say: We are all busy. We all commit to working, volunteering, taking care of friends and family, going, striving, achieving. We do wonderful things for many people. We are humans who are “doing.” But how often are we actually humans who are just “being?” How often do we take the time to recharge, to notice the world around us, to sit and rock on the front porch, to spend time playing and laughing and enjoying life? Without taking the time to become “human beings,” we have no energy, no strength, no joy for all of the “doing.”
When I read this, I woke up–and not just a Starbucks-provoked awakening. Somewhere over the last couple of years, in the midst of dealing with unhealthy relationships, family transitions, growing in my career, and starting a business, I stopped being and only focused on doing. With my eyes jolted open, I am trying my best to get back to my life as a human being…I close my eyes during a concert and experience the lyrics; I sit on my front porch and laugh with friends, even if it’s only over the phone; I hug the children I work with; I don’t beat myself up if I fall asleep on the couch when I should be working; I smile when I see the lightning bugs begin to light up my yard.
Do I have more time? Have I stopped being so busy? Is my life all tidy and under control? Have I stopped freaking out and taking on too much? Heck no! But I am focusing on the calm. On the peace. On the fun. On remembering that I should always take time to be a Human BEing.
What about you? What are some things that help YOU to stop and just “be”? I’d love to hear….
Sunset at 30,000 ft; November 2007