Do you defer your happiness?
Are you unknowingly putting your live on hold waiting for the perfect conditions to take place in order to be happy? Do you think when “such and such” happens you will finally feel content? Are you spending way too much time on social media only to emerge afterwards feeling empty or depleted?
“There is no beginning or end to your dreams or plans. Life is a journey from moment to moment. Live each day to the fullest”. ~Garth Catterall-Heart
When we forfeit now waiting for something to occur, we begin to live on the horizon and stop being present. In the wise words of that tubby little cubby all stuffed with fluff, Winnie the Pooh reminds us that, “Life is a journey to be experienced, not a problem to be solved.”
If we are not mindful, we begin to habitually postpone now without even realizing that we are doing so. It becomes our new normal. Yet, these unhealthy thinking patterns can create limiting beliefs that become part of our everyday operating system.
While waiting for the 5:00 bell to ring we can overlook all the really cool things that happened during the day. When waiting for the weekend we defer having fun during the week. Now, I’m not saying that we shouldn’t dream, plan, or look forward to things. Of course we should, but never at the expense of missing out on now.
“Life is a journey. How we travel is really up to us. We can just flow with the tide or follow our dreams.” ~Paulo Coelho
For instance, I am totally looking forward going to Europe with my daughter when she graduates college. It’s a big dream that we both have. However, I am not postponing living in happiness now waiting for the trip to happen for all to be okay. The planning and anticipating, enjoying the actual trip itself, and the wonderful memories that we will create and reminisce about afterwards are all part of the process. All of which takes place in the present moment, even the reminiscing.
Waiting for the perfect conditions to exist so we can fully experience life is an unattainable expectation. If we keep living too far out on the horizon, we delay now and risk missing out our own precious lives. Life happens in the everyday. How we choose to live our moments, what we look back on and look forward to is completely up to us.
As Ralph Waldo Emerson so astutely stated, “Life is a journey, not a destination.” Life is made up of the moments lived each day.
Like nature, we are ever changing. Day turns into night and then emerges with the dawn of a brand new day, only to do it over again and again. Nothing ever really stands still and life is certainly not static. There are good times and bad times, and everything in between. There are lessons to learn from experiencing sorrow and despair as well as deep joy and happiness. When we learn to trust our journey, even when we may not understand it at times, we experience life to the fullest.
“Presence is where the payoff is, just be with what’s going on in front of you. The next right step comes from that place.” ~Danielle LaPorte
Each and every one of us walks a different path, and even if we walk the same road together at times, our experiences will always be our own. Fall in love with YOUR journey. Only you can determine the right path for you for you are the only one who holds the key to your life.
We are not on a race. Think about this, if the destination is the end or our lives, why are we running to it? Slow down. Savor the moments of your precious life. See the inspiration in the everyday presents.
Follow your dreams while living each moment to the fullest. Stop waiting to live.
There is no there, there is only here.
“Go forward in life with a twinkle in your eye and a smile on your face, but with great and strong purpose in your heart.” ~Gordon B. Hinkley
