The Little Things

Get woken up by alarm. Hit snooze. Get re-woken up by alarm. Hit snooze again. Alarm goes off a third time. Reluctantly get out of bed. Make coffee. Get dressed. Drink coffee. Put on makeup. Refill on coffee. Do your hair. Get more coffee. Rush out the door. School. Work. Meetings. Squeeze in lunch. More school. More work. More meetings. Busy busy busy.

Stop. Just stop.

We as human beings complain about being busy so often, yet we seem to take some sick pride in it nonetheless. One of our most natural responses to a question is that we're busy.

"Can you hang out this weekend?"
"I don't know; I'm really busy."

"Do you have a minute to talk?"
"Not right now; I'm super busy."

"Are you remembering to breathe?"
"Not really, I'm just so busy."

Wash. Rinse. Repeat.

Why do we do this to ourselves? What is it about always being occupied that's so addictive? We get so caught up in what we need to do that we don't take the time to appreciate the minor gifts in life. When is the last time you had a real family dinner; you know, the kind where everyone sits down at the table together and catches up? Or how about the last time you and a friend just got coffee together, as in just the two of you; where you actually converse with each other instead of having your eyes glued to your mini-computers (aka life-ruiners disguised as SmartPhones) in your hand. We get so distracted by keeping up with the world that we end up missing out on the greatest moments in life. It's okay to set aside fifteen minutes--just fifteen--to do absolutely nothing.

Go outside. Read a fun book underneath a tree. Play fetch with your dog in the backyard. Take a nature walk. Pray while you hike. Enjoy the sound of the wind rustling the leaves. Watch birds fly around in the sky. Lay down in the grass, close your eyes, and just breathe. Enjoy the little things.

When you've grown old, you're not going to look back on your life and say "man, I wish I worked more." Allow yourself time to take a break; a real break. Don't check up on your twitter or facebook feeds. Don't watch stupid cat videos on youtube. Remove yourself from all of that. Take the toxins out of your life.

Just breathe. Just be.

❤