6.21.2014

In the now...


I was reading this post by Miss.Mustard Seed the other day and boy, how it resonated with me!   She was talking about being present in the moment- enjoying the now, and not just looking forward to the next big thing.  That is a struggle for people like us who are so project oriented.  I am a list maker, a goal setter- a DOER.   Going over the list of things to do and crossing off what has been completed has always been a huge part of who I am and how I think.  I am very task oriented in both my professional and private life.

The book of life...

Quitting teaching was so incredibly liberating for me.  For the first year I lived my life much like someone who had experienced a close brush with death, because for me it felt just like that.  I was suffocating creatively and not able to achieve the goals I had set for myself.  In short, many lists were made, but very little was crossed off.  I was dying.  Leaving that environment and letting myself breathe creatively was the smartest thing I've ever done.  Now I teach, but in a way that is creative and fulfilling for me, but also directly meets the needs of my students and feeds them creatively.   I couldn't be happier.

I've also learned to embrace the process that happens between making my list and crossing it off.  I used to be so impatient for that line to be scratched in my planner, but now I really wake up each day and look forward to the small steps that will be accomplished.  Glitches and hiccups that used to irritate me, now give me an opportunity to embrace problem solving and push me in my creative thinking.  I've flipped the lens so to speak, and try to live in the moment (even the upsetting ones) and truly feel what is going on around me instead of looking to the finished product.  In doing that I find that I enjoy the finish so much more because I took the time to relish the during.  

I'm not a happiness expert, but making this slight change in how I view a project, and really paying attention to finding joy in the process has made all the difference in the world for me.  Instead of thinking, "When we get moved in...." or "When that gets built/finished..." and picturing the happy moment happening then, I now realize that it's in the day to day, the hiccups and glitches, the process.

It is there that the joy lies waiting to be discovered.

10 comments:

  1. Hi Tricia! I'm visiting via Brenda's and first let me compliment you on your lovely blog. I'm not sure why it's taken me so long to discover you but for sure you've gained a new follower.

    I too read that post and like you and so many others it hit home. There are so many lessons to be learned in life it seems...treat people like it's the last time you might see them...live in the moment...appreciate the little things. Essentially, stop and smell the roses.

    It's something that's not so easy to do I'm afraid. Sometimes people annoy us! lol Sometimes we just want that kitchen to be finished! Sometimes we just are tired of the humdrum and look forward to that vacation in Maui ;). But knowledge is power, and experiencing life and the precious gift that it truly is can be vey liberating. Congratulations to you for doing just that!

    Now I'm off to look a bit more on your blog then I'll be hopefully crossing off a thing or two on that long list of mine. :)

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    1. Hi Doreen! Thank you so much for visiting :)

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  2. It's the journey, not the destination. My Little House has taught me that. Great post and thanks for taking us with you on your journey.

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    1. So very true, and I know you are appreciating the journey :)

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  3. MMS's was a great post. I am also on that journey. Check out Walt Hampton's blog also. He calls it The Big Lie.

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    1. I went and visited his blog! Very inspirational- thank you for sharing :)

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  4. I love this post! I've had little talks with myself recently about this very thing...and trying to BE in the moment with stuff instead of looking ahead and trying to scratch things off my list just to do so. Thanks for this lovely reminder.

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    1. Sometimes we need a reminder- I know I do!

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  5. Amen! And I can 100% relate to the experience of quitting teaching.

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    1. I was so sad to leave. I had such a passion and excitement for it- but it was beat out of me in less than five years. If we are doing that to our teachers, what are we doing to the students??

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Thanks so much for popping in. I appreciate all of your lovely comments...Tricia