and can we get a redo…

my happy place…

This has been one of the shortest summers of my life. And then factoring in all the rainy days we had, one after another…I think we need..no deserve, a redo. Maybe a 3 month, 75 degrees and sunshine redo! What about you?

I’ve been thinking about how short this summer felt and have heard others say the same thing. And it started me thinking as to why the years seem to go by so fast now as compared to when I was a teen. The summers seemed to last forever and even the whole year seemed longer than the ones today. It seemed like 10 years would go by from one birthday till the next. Of course that was when I was excited to have a birthday and couldn’t wait for it to come each and every year. Now, not so much! Although I must say I am happy to be around to even have another birthday..

I remember Mom saying how fast the years were going by as she got older. I never really understood that until recently…as my days always seemed endless. Working and raising three kids at the time made my days very very long and tiring. However looking back on it all now it seems like it happened in the blink of an eye. Do the days truly go by faster as we age or does it just feel that way? And why does it feel that way? And can we stop it?

When we were kids each day was new and exciting, something different, even if it wasn’t a good thing, was happening in our lives. Our new friends at school, our first date, our first kiss….getting married, having kids of our own. All of these things made our lives so busy and full. As we age we tend to do the same things over and over. We go to work, we come home, eat dinner, go to bed and do it all over again the next day. Day after day after day… We stop having new experiences and life just goes by faster and faster.

We get to a point in our lives that we settle. And at first glance that feels like a good thing after all those years of doing too much. But is it? We go to the same places, we eat at the same restaurants, we do the same things. We fall into routines and it feels comfortable and we think..yes, this is what I want. But is it?

It would seem like all those routines we have would make everything perfect. But it doesn’t. The more routines we have the faster the time goes. And think about this, when we are 12, a year is a big percentage of our life, but when we are 60 or more…a year is just a blip on the screen of life. So what can we do to change this? How do we slow things down at this point in our lives?

The answer is simple…visit new places, do something new every day..something you’ve never done before…eat new foods..take a class, start a new business..one you love and that wont feel like work. Be more present in your life! Be in the moment! Enjoy life! Try not to live in the past or dwell on it…yes memories are good but think about them and then move on. Don’t try and figure out what the future holds. It will happen regardless of us stressing about it. Be mindful and meditate. Get out in nature and just “be!”

And so my friends,the answer is…yes! Yes we can make the world slow down. Our world….

“How did it get late so soon? It’s night before it’s afternoon. December is here before it’s June. My goodness how the time has flewn. How did it get so late so soon? ~ Dr Seuss