on appreciating the journey and the small joys

At this time last week,  people in our area experienced a major weather event that altered life for a time. An ice storm blew through, destroying trees and power equipment, leaving most of us in the dark and cold and some without water, for the better part of a week. The basic necessities of living were now the very focus of our days. Food, light, gasoline, warmth, water, all of this became our priority, along with assessing the damage and cleaning up the mess that was left behind.

Now that things are back to normal and we’re at the point that we’re dealing with the clean-up and restocking our refrigerators, I notice that the conversations have changed. People are talking about how late Spring is coming in this year. Where is the abundance of flowers we usually see in March? Why is it still so cold when we should be donning our lighter wear and packing away our wooly items?

People are funny. Our minds work in mysterious ways.  We all waited and waited for things to be restored and once it was then we’re on to the next achievement or goal. I’m not suggesting that people should wallow in their misfortune, but maybe we should be enjoying the moment reached, the victory achieved, before moving on to the next big event. Daily happiness is made up of all those small moments and a lifetime of happiness is the result of all those moments met and memories made. It’s important to stop, take a breath, and notice the small events that happen between the bigger occasions.  It’s like walking along the beach with the aim of reaching the pier off in the distance.  It’s great to set a goal and it’s equally ok not to reach it.  You can stop on your sandy walk, look up, see that pier far off and still notice the beauty of where your steps have led you to this point. It’s still a pretty great journey, even if you never reach the pier.

So celebrate right now. There is some small thing that you can find that is worthy of your attention and can bring you satisfaction, if not real happiness. You get to decide. It all comes from inside of you. You can’t let outside events, outside people take over control of your emotions. So pay attention. Take notice of the small moments. Celebrate the journey as well as the goal reached.  You can enjoy what you have rather than focusing all of your attention on what you haven’t.

As for the ice storm, I celebrated the fact that there was a coffee shop and a few brave, patient employees situated in a teeny, tiny section of the main road that hadn’t lost power. It gave me a place to find respite from the cold and something warm to put in my stomach and at night, we could pass some of the dark hours at our favorite pub downtown to play some music, watch the game, sit with friends and enjoy a beer. It wasn’t a lot – but it was everything!