A renewed sense of being

Posted on 06. Nov, 2009 by Susan Wright in Life Coaching

I must admit, before having children I would never get up by 6:00 a.m. unless it was to go skiing for the day. It’s lovely to wake up to a little person who is bright-eyed and simply happy, especially if you are not a “morning person” like me.  It always amazes me how a toddler can just stand up in the crib, start bouncing and be so WIDE awake; no hitting the snooze bar three times and rolling over to a new found coziness. No way! These little beings are pumped, ready and say “Hello day!” What happened to that inner child in me?

Too many late nights, eating after 8:00 p.m., lying in bed ruminating about the days issues, or thinking about tomorrow’s tasks. Even the so called “passive” things like reading a great novel, journaling, or conversing with your partner or friends can lead to mind overload.  As adults, we just have far too many stimulating activities or ways to engage us that we don’t turn off. Any rational, logical person knows that, like children, we need to wind down in the evening or at least maintain a healthy routine to invite a good nights rest.  Clearly, for those who are late night musical performers or work shifts, the night-time routine is entirely different. However, I think it’s fair to say that any functioning human being needs a way to shut off and relax fully.

What really prompted this entry, was the walk outside I had with my children this morning. The frost on the ground, the moon and sun in opposing positions, the calmness, the air.  I really enjoy my early morning walks and somehow I get to experience something unique before it passes.  I suppose this is why the great healers of the world encourage us to meditate at dawn when the vibrations are low and there is a surrounding peace. I don’t suppose we can tap into any of this when we scramble to get out the door and commute to our place of work. This is one big reason why I love working from home: it gives me a clearing time to move into my day with ease.  For many of us, this option is not available. However, we can invite some of what I mention and experience by choosing to get up earlier, taking 5-10 minutes to meditate, or 20 minutes to walk outside, and developing a healthy evening routine. Underlying this invitation is a personal awareness.

I will confess I’m not good at all these things. I too, like to watch the odd good TV show, read a book or communicate over the Internet in the evening.  It doesn’t matter whether you’re single, living with someone, a parent, a student, or a child; we all need time for ourselves and time to enjoy the beauty of our surroundings, or a moment to simply engage with something beyond what we see. With all the ways we can communicate with each other and the world it’s not easy to shut down to disengage and tune into our senses. I wonder, are we afraid we’ll miss something? Are we worried we won’t fulfill some artificially-imposed deadline or demand? Are we just so caught up with life, work, school, the stock market or anything else that we just fail to unwind?

I am fortunate to have little people in my life to remind me of simplicity and the necessity of routine and “nighty nights,” as well as, bouncy, wide-awake mornings. I also appreciate that I don’t have the headache of dealing with a long work-day commute. Yet like any other adult, I can get caught up in activity, distractions, worry and other issues of the day.  I suppose this is why a nice glass of wine is so appealing at the end of the day, we actually stop to smell the bouquet.  Yet, there are other opportunities to partake in that engage our senses enough to smell, feel and be calm, quiet and appreciative.

The option to make a conscious choice to live a simpler life, to indulge the senses with an early morning walk or late evening stroll. The choice to say “no” to the endless amount of work, distractions and negative influences. The conscious decision to be just as you are and joyfully appreciate being awake and alive.

As for what happened to the inner child in me, she is there when I’m aware to be just as I am.

Take time for you and be.

Susan

Tags: appreciation, awareness, Busy lifestyles, choice, sense of being, Time for self