Are you a worrier? Do you have regrets? Were you able to find satisfaction in the little things in your life today? If not, you may be struggling with “living in the moment.”
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about ‘living in the moment.” Along with being the Queen of the Universe, I was also the Queen of Worrying and the Queen of Regrets. But you see, when you worry you are living in the future and regrets are living in the past. We can’t really do anything about those, and when we live that way we are crowding out our opportunity to live in the present and most likely are missing some great moments.
Yesterday was one of those days. I had a million errands on my to-do list. I find that if I have a to-do list that is impossibly long, this also prohibits living in the moment. Well, anyway, at my second stop, my car wouldn’t start. My first thought was to throw my hands up and react in frustration.
However, I caught myself and just decided to take care of the problem and go with the flow. I called AAA and in just a few minutes, the wrecker driver arrived. Because I changed my perspective and was relaxed, the drive to the mechanic was relaxed as well. I had a lovely conversation with the wrecker drive who offered to stick around to give me a ride home. I graciously thanked him and declined. And went on inside.
I had a book along with me and, at first during my wait, my nose was in the book. I had the sensation that someone was watching me. I looked up and a little toddler boy who was sitting with his parents was looking at me. So I smiled and waved. He smiled and waved back. We did this for a few minutes. His parents spoke, so I walked closer to speak with them. The little boy reached out for me. The parents let me hold him. I can’t tell you, the feeling of joy and happiness just for the few minutes of holding this precious little boy. I’m tearing up right now thinking about that feeling.
His parents were amazed and told me that he never lets strangers hold him. But I knew that God sent him my way today as my little miracle and to remind me again of what I miss when I fail to live in the moment. You see, I didn’t get my to-do list done. But in the grand scheme of things, that isn’t always that important anyway. It’s people that are important and I connected with three people yesterday. What are you missing when you fail to live in the moment? Try it out and see what miracles happen in your life. Share with me your living in the moment experiences.
Deborah (Debbie) Stevens is an MBA, CPA, Money Maven who offers down to earth accounting, tax and consulting services, is a health and fitness coach, and jewelry designer and re-engineerer. With more than 10 years in public accounting and 6 years in private industry, her boundless energy and talents are now focused on making small businesses successful by analyzing the problems, discussing the issues, and crafting the appropriate solutions. Her strong, personal integrity, hard work, sheer determination coupled with a deep fun-loving view of life are what makes her tick. After having lost 116 lbs in 15 months, she has recently added weight loss and fitness coaching into the business mix. She is passionate about everything she does with a deep desire to help people. She is personable, down to earth, and ready to roll up her sleeves and get started on your business solutions. 
My Twitter Feed
Nice post, kind of like taking time to stop and smell the roses. We often lose sight of the fact that we are in charge of our happiness & it really is a matter of perspective. Glad you took the time to make a new little friend, babies are great judges of character
Great reminder Deborah! It is so easy to get caught up with life that we miss those precious moments.
What a beautiful reminder, Deborah! I’ve found myself in similarly stressful situations that completely turned around once I changed my mindset. And there, without the to-do list weighing us down and the anxiety and stress blocking our vision, we find unimagined joys.
Thanks Deborah. I’m a huge fan of living in the now. I liked what you said “But you see, when you worry you are living in the future and regrets are living in the past.” Right on target. When you’re in the NOW you open yourself up for so many more wonderful things. You might enjoy my post http://prosperyourmind.blog.com/2010/05/14/being-in-the-now/
Thanks again for the reminder,
Michael
Living in the moment! That is what it is all about. My Moment: Hiking with kids to a creek and jumping in yesterday. It was 100 degrees but the creek was like 40! It was great!
Debbie,
Very sweet and touching story, thanks. Being in the moment is the challenge, yet the only place we can truly live and experience our love. As a friend of mine once said, “there are no problems, only moments.”
Take care,
Adam
Whatever worries us or perplexes us it is simplified and put in perspective by a hug from a small child. I am lucky enough to have five grandchildren who share cuddles regularly. It’s all I need to feel that life is very generous and full of love if we just approached it in the right way. Thank your for an uplifting post, Debbie
Peter
Debbie
Love the post. My mother always worried about things. I always asked her if there was anything she could do about it. The answer was no….so why worry!
Have a Great Day
Chester
My sister is a worrier. She comes up with unbelievable scenarios. She feels like worrying is caring, and if she stopped, it meant she didn’t care.
Have you noticed how hard it is to teach a worrier not to worry?
It is amazing when a mindset alteration takes place beautiful things can happen. It’s so much how we respond to things that happen to us, not the actual thing that happened, if that makes sense LOL!