How about we stop waiting for summer. For the kids to be older. Til we drop the last 5 kgs. For Friday. For the weekend.Stop waiting for the big milestones of life and enjoy the moment right now ‘Til the exams are over. ‘Til the reno is done. ‘Til the mortgage is paid off. ‘Til the house is bought. ‘Til the deposit is saved. ‘Til she behaves herself. ‘Til he falls into line. ‘Til the flights are booked. The work is done. The boss says yes. The campaign is over. The treatment is complete. The project starts. The term finishes. ‘Til we have some space. ‘Til we have some time. ‘Til they sleep through the night. ‘Til she says yes. ‘Til it’s sold. ‘Til it’s bought. ‘Til we can afford it.
If we are not mindful, happiness can be deferred for so many good, and not so good, reasons. Daily life can become a mental ticker tape of things to get done, and days to be got through before the big ticket milestones fall into place. We can become so focused on the future that we forget to connect to the tiny moments of joy that are inherent in the now.
It is a great truth that as much as there will always be something to appreciate in the worst of times (if we dig really deep it will be there), there is conversely also always something to complain about in the best of times if that’s where our focus goes. It’s up to each of us to figure out which way we want to habitually look at the world.
Choosing to stop waiting to be happy can be one of the most powerful choices we can ever make. We can miss so many everyday moments of happiness accessible right now this minute when we are in wait mode for the significant jigsaw pieces of life to fall into place.
When a small hand slips into ours at pick up. That we have people to share a meal with at the end of the day. For the nourishing food on our plate. That we have incredible gadgets to clean our home that prior generations spent their whole day doing manually (my Granny had a mangle in the outhouse, for goodness sake!). That we just messaged a friend 12,000 miles away on the other side of the world in 3 seconds on our phone. That our sheets smell clean and fresh. That we breathe such clean, green air and don’t even think about it. That our bodies are walking, talking and seeing effortlessly. The sunshine on our skin. The breeze in our hair. The smile of a stranger. The unbridled glee of a child at something so small. The dog is so happy to see us home.
When we have our eye waiting for the big jigsaw pieces to fall into place and rushing to the next thing, we can chronically overlook the tiny moments of joy that are only accessible right now. It’s the little moments that light life up. Look up people, look up. Happiness is right now.
