Hopefully, you had a wonderful, long, THANKSGIVING weekend with lots of laughter and a very full tummy! And I don’t know about you, but even with four days off, the holiday whizzed by!
As we enter four weeks of countdown craziness to Christmas, do you long to make time slow down? Want to grasp onto the experience of the season?
Two words: Be Present.
The act of ‘being present’ does two things for us: not only does being present allow us to use all of our senses to gain full immersion into an experience, but it is also how we’re able to look back and have specific tangible memories of an experience.
Like being whisked back to Christmas dinner at grandma’s house when you smell a freshly baked pumpkin pie. Or bursting with joy and pride when you’re actively watching your kid shine in the school performance (because you’re not recording it on your phone). Or just sitting, sharing a hot coffee (or toddy!) with a loved one, and sinking into each other’s company and the conversation.
From a physiological perspective, when we allow ourselves to be fully present, all our senses tune into what is happening at that moment.
Because nothing else but that moment matters!! All our senses receive simultaneous information about the present situation. This sensation overload is also exactly what allows us to recall these experiences so well.
We have a more FULL experience because our senses are on a healthy overload and this increases our conscious and subconscious engagement in the situation.
Lastly, when we make the active decision to be present, time slows down and we sink into our experience of LIFE.
All the distractions, all the craziness of life, all the hustle of the season melts away – even if only for a few minutes.
Each day this season, just once, make a deliberate decision to be present.
If you choose to do this, I guarantee you will not only experience more joy and create more lasting memories this season, but the season will also slow down so you can actually enjoy it. And you deserve to enjoy it!!