Weekends Go Too Fast

I hope your weekend was a good one and that you had a chance to relax and renew yourself.

 

My weekends always seem to fly by and just when I'm feeling as though I have totally brought myself down from the workweek, it's time to begin a new one.

 

It's okay though; I selfishly wring every minute of down time out of the weekend that I can.  Even if I am grocery shopping or running other errands, I try to enjoy the outdoors and reduce the pressure to get everything done in record time!

  

 

I try to unplug myself, even briefly from my electronic gadgets because I think they make me less patient.  More and more is supposed to happen in an instant today and life doesn't always follow our wants.  We become frustrated when phones are busy, computers freeze up, ATM machines run slowly or the checkout lines are long.

 

Waiting for something to work is an opportunity.  It is.  Come on, you know it is.  This is what I tell myself because no matter how much I want something to work faster, it never does.

It's an opportunity to pump the brakes and slow myself down.  I may feel like I am trying to beat the clock when I set out to do my errands but I really don't need to accomplish all my wants in one day. 

 

So when I miss a green light or have to reboot my computer and open all my programs up again, I try really hard to use that time to take a couple of deep breaths and remind myself that whatever I am trying to do will get done. . .eventually.
 

Be Careful Out There

 

 

 

 

On Saturday, I went to visit my parents who are in their eighties and my brother who has Down's Syndrome. 

 

It was a beautiful day, full of sunshine and hints of the coming of Spring.  We had a delicious lunch at a local Irish pub and some good solid conversation and then it was time for me to "toddle on home," as my great friend Ellen would say. 

 

I stopped at the gas station near my parent's house because I like to take advantage of the cheaper gas prices in Rockville, Maryland.  There were no other cars in the gas station so I had the pick of any pump.  After I stopped and got out of the car, I walked up to the concrete island where the gas pumps are located, thinking I would cut through to the cashier.

 

As I stepped up to the concrete island, I looked down to check my coat pocket where I had earlier put a twenty dollar bill.  One foot was on the island and I guess I thought my other foot had cleared the island but it hadn't.  I know you know what happened next.

 

In an instant -- it's so cliche, but so true -- I lost control and went flying across the concrete.  The next thing I knew I could feel my face scraping the rough surface of the pavement. BAM!  I laid there for a few minutes and hoped I hadn't broken anything.  At the same time, I had this vision of what I looked like from another person's perspective as in "What in the hell is that woman doing laying on the concrete by the gas pump?"

 

For all of you adults out there -- men and women -- I hope you remain upright every day of your life.  Falling is humiliating and scary.  When it is happening you really don't know how or where you are going to land.  At first, I was afraid to move, but then I slowly got up.  As I did I felt my face was bleeding but I couldn't tell where and I also realized I had ripped a hole in the right knee of my pants and my knee was scraped too.

 

As I slowly walked into the gas station, I felt the full impact of what had happened and started to cry.  You should have seen the look on the two guys inside the gas station store.  One was sitting down on a chair and immediately jumped up and came to help me and the other one went to get a first aid kit.  There was no mirror so I had to look into the stainless steel that surrounds the edge of the refrigerator doors where drinks are sold.  It was then that I realized I had cut my nose and my chin and also scraped my glasses on the lense and on the bridge.

 

The younger guy kept asking me if I was okay because I couldn't stop crying.  I think I was crying more out of frustration than actual pain although my face was throbbing.  I couldn't believe I had done this to myself.  What a klutz!  You would think that at this point in my life that I would be able to put one foot in front of the other.

 

Eventually I got cleaned up and the younger guy offered to pump my gas.  One of my sisters said he should have offered to give me free gas but I don't think that ever happens.

 

As I drove home, I went over the events again in my mind and realized what a wake-up call it was.  At least my fall had happened in a public place.  Even though no one had been with me, strangers had reached out to help me.  But suppose others hadn't been around. 

 

I felt that fear that comes when there is the possibility that you might not be able to take care of yourself.  I do need to be more aware of myself and my surroundings and concentrate on whatever the moment at hand is.

When you are in a hurry and you are thinking about too many things at the same time, this is when life reminds you that you need to stop and be more careful about what you are doing.

 

I was lucky!!! I didn't break anything and I was able to get up on my own and go about my business.

 

And I learned the hard way that when I am by myself, I can't be so casual about moving around.

 

Okay, universe I heard your message and I have taken it to heart: Be careful out there!

 

Beers With Friends

 

 

 

 

A good friend of mine posted the below story on her Facebook page but there was no source of authorship so I don't know who wrote it or where it came from.

 

But I thought it was wonderful story, definitely asking me to think about how I spend my time and how I prioritize my life: family, friends, my health, my passions.  Do I get a sense of meaning from my work, daily activities and relationships?  Maybe I am letting the small stuff get in the way of the more important stuff?

 

It's always healthy to reassess yourself.

 

I try to create a healthy and loving life for myself and to give thanks every day.  I find when I go out of my way to promote a positive mental attitude within myself that I then find it's a little easier to focus on the  satisfaction in what life gives me.  If I'm always working against what is happening around me, then that's when I'm out of tune with myself.

 

The simpler I make my life, the less turmoil I cause myself.

 

I think the professor would agree.  Here's his story:

 

 

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise  jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full.. The students responded with a unanimous 'yes.'

The professor then produced two Beers from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed..

'Now,' said the professor as the laughter subsided, 'I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things---your family, your children, your health, your friends and your favorite passions---and if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full. The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car.. The sand is everything else---the small stuff.

'If you put the sand into the jar first,' he continued, 'there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life.

If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you.

Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness.

Spend time with your children. Spend time with your parents. Visit with grandparents. Take your spouse out to dinner. Play another 18. There will always be time to clean the house and mow the lawn.

Take care of the golf balls first---the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the Beer represented. The professor smiled and said, 'I'm glad you asked.' The Beer just shows you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of Beers with a friend.