Daily Green

I just finished reading a post by a fellow blogger who wrote about the necessity of finding quiet moments in the chaos, of taking time for yourself, of remembering to "just breathe." Even though I don't have three children, as she does, I also sometimes find myself pushing to finish or get to projects I "should" do. Their demands on my psyche can put me into a frenzy. Those moments are when it is most important to remember to just breathe, to pause and just "Be."

When I am out in the midst of transplanting blackberries, moving compost, building a new raised bed, pruning fruit trees, trimming dead stuff out of the flower beds, weeding.... I make a point of pausing and looking upward to watch a flock of honking geese go by, to say hello to the honeybees looking for sustenance in the crocus blooms, to search for new blossoms, or pull back the dead stuff to see look for fresh leaves on the nettles. Whatever lovely moment happens, I try to pause and take it in.

My husband helps in this. While driving home from work, he has called to tell me to go out and look at a particularly beautiful sunset. He reminds me that even though I am not the one going OUT to work, that I do a lot of work and it is OK for me to take time for myself. It is OK to just breathe, to just Be. I try to do the same for him.

Whatever demands your life brings, don't believe the screaming in your head that says that they are more important than looking at the sunset, or sunrise, or talking to the bees, or smelling a rose, or hugging someone, or listening to a child's story or any moment that makes life rich and wonderful and beautiful. When you are on your deathbed, you won't wish that you had washed dishes more...

So when the laundry or dirty dishes command and you find yourself harried and frenzied and wishing for all the world just to step outside and absorb the beauty of that sunset... ask yourself, "Which would I wish to be the last memory I take with me?" Then do it and really, truly Be there.