Stop and Focus: The Outcome

I have spent the last two weeks putting special emphasis on the "stop and focus" task of my quest to find my joie de vivre.

Two weeks is simple enough and it totally helps with the highs of wins at work, a new boy who captivates you, and friends and family to fill your time.

But all highs come to end and it is in the lows that I needed to remember what I was doing...

It hit me, Thursday night, towards the end of this project... I had just left a difficult conversation and made my way back to the house I was house/dog sitting. Nearly 11pm and I couldn't find parking anywhere. Once I had finally given up and parked in someone else's spot, I walk in to find the dog had torn up everything. Everything. My frustration continued through the late night... 2am... then 4am because of wake up calls by this dog who isn't mine. And ii didn't stop once the sun came back up with aggravating emails, losses at work, and things not going according to my plan.

The high that was just a few days prior, was long gone.

It was so silly but as I was out getting my second caffiene fix of the day, Lenka, my muse, came on the speakers with a song I hadn't yet heard: 

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZaE4TY09C8]

And I was reminded... that highs end... lows end... and all that is in-between comes and goes as well. I have to stop and think about what is amazing right now.

I must be present.

So I:  

went all in.

took a walk... in the rain.

finally went back home and slept amazingly in my own bed next to my perfect dog.

told as many funny stories as I could think of.

wore the brightest dress I owned to a black attire event.

stayed up late.

slept in.

searched high and low for a great mother's day dessert... taste testing as I went.

made new friends.

talked till late in the night.

kissed the boy I like.

 

In general, I am an optimist. But I enjoy keeping myself as busy as possible and it is often in the busyness of life, that I miss the little things that happen all the time. I found that when I was at my highest moments of frustration that I literally need to stop, breathe, and think of one thing that is amazing in my life at that moment. After just a few seconds of that I was ready to take on the world.