Yes, a picture is worth a thousand words and there were a thousand good moments during the recent vineyards tour my wife Debbie and I took part in with some good friends. But the picture is more like a metaphor for the next few paragraphs: the ability to raise a glass, have a taste and drink it in.
A taste of what? Wine is good, in fact, wine is great, because it is one of those things that makes you go slow, sip, taste and savor. Such is the way we should approach everything, but too few of us do. We get so wrapped up and immersed in thinking about tomorrow, we forget to live in the moment, to live for today. It’s not easy, it takes practice, it takes discipline, it’s still a work in progress for me… but when I can accomplish it, I feel more relaxed, at ease, at peace and in tune with what really matters. I also realize that life doesn’t have to be that complicated, especially if you are engaged in the moment, in the right now.
Before I sat down to write this blog I had to open a new page and just before I hit that “new” button I glanced at a number which sits in the upper left hand corner of my screen, it read, 300 posts. So today, in this moment, I am turning a corner to 301. In a little over 18 months, I have managed to sit down and share my thoughts, experiences, education, message and stories a total of 300 times. I take pride in that not so much as a number, but in the fact that I take the time, and I have taken the time to be present for those moments, to stop, to think and to write down my thoughts, share a positive message, share what I am learning, tell a story about someone else, (The Sunday Series), to be engaged with the world around me and just as important to hopefully engage others in the same process.
Life is just too big, moves too fast and has too much to offer to not be present, to only live for tomorrow, and miss out on today. To do so is a unfulfilled existence. Plan for tomorrow yes, but live in this moment you are in right now, whether it’s great, or not so great, at least be there. If it’s good, if it’s wonderful, than savor it, don’t just think about or worry about when it will end, live it. If it’s bad, understand you are never stuck where you are, and whatever it is, it is still so small compared to the universe around you. You can’t always be worrying about the challenges of tomorrow — but you will if you don’t live in the now, because you are missing out on the beauty of today.
I heard a great line recently about fear and worry, and the danger of only forecasting doom and gloom – don’t you dare give your power away to an event which has not yet occurred. It is a crime to do so and the punishment for that crime is a constant state of stress and focus on failing at something which has not yet even happened. It’s a sad, tough existence. Don’t do it.
I just finished reading The Charge by Brendon Burchard, and I will end with a few lines from his final chapter in that book because they fit into the message I am trying to convey right now:
“I can be ready and willing to improve my life and yet at total peace with what what my life is now. Few positive things ever resulted over the long term when driven by anger, frustration, or hurt. I say, instead, to fully acknowledge and appreciate that it all has unfolded in this way for a reason and that an even greater door is opening for your, at this very second, to something more magical and exciting than you could ever fathom.”
I say, raise your glass, take a sip of life and drink it in.
Until next time, thanks for taking the time.
Mark
Mark Brodinsky, Author, Huffington Post Blogger, Financial Services
The #1 Amazon Best-Seller: It Takes 2. Surviving Breast Cancer: A Spouse’s Story
(http://www.spouses-story.com/)
Connect with Mark, use the contact page on this blog, or e-mail: markbrodinsky@gmail.com
Great story
Thank you Gayle.