moments

It’s not rocket science. It’s a simple concept, easy to understand, and yet hard to live.

A lot of life is mundane. Cleaning yourself, your dishes, your clothes, your bathroom… preparing food, getting dressed, lawn & garden care… Commuting, grocery shopping, vacuuming…

So much time is dedicated to small things that take our time. Mundane things that we have to do regularly. Since so much time is dedicated to these moments that make up most of our day, a big question to ponder is, how do we find joy in everyday moments?

Doing laundry can be a chore, or it can be a chance to sing unabashedly, or to engross yourself in an audiobook. Cooking can be a boring set of tasks like chopping vegetables and measuring cups of flower, or it can be a labour of love that brings as much joy as eating the delicious end product.

The big question to ask yourself is if you choose to see these tasks as mundane and necessary but uninteresting, or if you choose to embrace these moments as opportunities to appreciate your life, and to find meaning in doing the tasks that you need to do. Because these tiny moments add up to more life experiences than the things you normally look forward to.

Why not choose to appreciate everyday moments?

It’s 6:17 and I just got off of a Stair Master. When I am at a gym with cardio equipment I don’t have at home, I like to use it. I was contemplating heading out to the beach to see the sunrise at 6:21, but it would be a rush to get to a good viewpoint from here just in time.

Then in my head I saw the sunrise I took a picture of yesterday. Then I saw an image of the sunset I took the day before. Beautiful. Serene. Majestic.

Running from here to capture the moment today would not have been the same. It would have felt like an effort, and the moment would have been more about documenting that I saw it again, rather than appreciating it.

Tomorrow I’ll plan to be at the water, coffee in hand. I will not lift my camera as I have on previous mornings, instead I’ll just enjoy the moment. Un-rushed, appreciative, and listening to the waves crash.

You can rush to an event, but you can’t rush a feeling you are seeking. You can race to a meeting, and be present, but you also have to be aware of your presence.

I missed the sunrise this morning, but if I rushed to see it, it would not have added value to the memories of sunrises I already hold in my mind. There is the idea of watching the sunset, there is the actual viewing of it, and there is the experience it evokes. Today would have been all about the first two… and so I really didn’t miss all that much.

Tomorrow I’ll delight in the moment.

Now back to my workout.