Taking time is often hard for me to do, because I find myself wanting to do too much too often. This is especially true just before a trip, or a big event, when my usual large list gets impossibly larger. I’ve been aware of this tendency of mine for a long time. I understand and accept that it’s part of who I am. I also know that taking time for all the things I allow into my day is very important.

Taking time is essential if I want to be present in my life. When I don’t take time to be with whatever it is I’m doing or whomever it is I’m with, it’s because I’m thinking of something else, like the next thing on my to do list. While I may be physically there, I am not engaged at all. I am absent.

I am absent not only to myself but also to the situation I’m in and to you.

To be present means deciding what I’m going to allow into my day; to look at my list and choose what is important for me to be a part of that day.

It’s ironic. Today as I write my blog, I have 7 meetings, 2 reports, and one work-out engagement. Immediately after I’d begun writing the blog, I connected with a friend to work out together, saying it would be speedy because I was running out of time.

He laughed. I laughed. And that helped me slow down and enjoy the time I’d put aside for this purpose.

Humour always helps to bring me back to reality, and to the present.

Quote of the Week