I am not sure why it is that most of us, me included, go through life and actually miss life. It has been said and I believe it true that you cannot go from a good life to a great life without the ability to enjoy those great moments of your life. C.S. Lewis has said, “Joy is serious business in heaven.”
Most of us have been taught through the years that we are to take life seriously, very seriously if we want to get any place in this world. There is always work to be done. There is never a shortage of things that can be done. One of the things about a job is that the work is there and the management will let you, if not encourage you, to work longer and longer hours. This translates into each of us developing that “over serious” attitude toward life.
I guess it’s time to ask the question – are you enjoying your life? Not many of us can answer that positively. We think that we will begin to enjoy life when we finish our long list of things to do. We will enjoy life after we get through college. We will enjoy life after we get married. After we have a house. After we have kids. Then, it is after the kids leave home. After we get that next promotion. After we get that next raise. And of course, after we can retire. Life goes by and we do not enjoy the moments that we are living now. Enjoyment never comes. Enjoyment is always right around the corner, but we never actually get there.
If you think that you can be a great person living a life that has an absence of laughter, relaxation, and just plain fun, you are going to reach the end and be sadly mistaken. Life is to be enjoyed where we are at when we are there. Solomon wrote, I know there is nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live. Ecclesiastes 3:12
So how what can we do to change our thinking and change our enjoyment of life?
1. “Stop and smell the roses.” I know you have heard it before. But it doesn’t matter how many times you have heard it does not make it less true. If we do not consciously plan to stop sometime we won’t do it. There is nothing like taking your young grandchildren for a walk. They have to stop and look at everything. The ants, the bugs, the flowers, the dandelions and all the other things in nature. Children know how to stop and smell the roses. We can actually learn from them.
2. Remember and celebrate your successes. We can just go speeding through life and there can be a number of successes but if we never stop to think about them they will just fade into the forgotten past. We will continue on with our head down and a frown on our face.
3. Slim down. I am not necessary referring to weight loss. We can slim down our life in many areas. Your schedule, your meals, your goals, whatever it is that has filled up all the hours of your days.
If you are having trouble enjoying life you can follow Valora Jones in what she has to offer and that is travel. It has been said that travel, done correctly, is one of the ways to enjoy life. She has website address that says it all - restfultravels com.
James Heller
