time to smell the roses...

It's going to be one of those days.

Hectic. Busy. Out of Control.

I can feel it about ready to burst. I've got in my hands a list of all that needs to be accomplished today.

It's a long list.

And it's not one of those lists of 'want to get done', it's a 'NEEDS to get done' list. Perhaps I could have whittled it down a bit by knocking a few items OFF said list prior to today, but there were things that came up that prevented me from doing so. Important things.

Like go swimming with my daughter, and having lunch with my new mommy friends of my daughters classmates in one of their backyards. Things like reading a few chapters of my book whilst feeding the ever growing koi in our pond, take a bike ride and the dogs for a walk. Things like waking up early to enjoy a cup of coffee on the front porch before the masses awake. Things I don't normally do because I'm running on list hyper speed.

I brought my computer out with me with my coffee this morning to catch up on some other reading. To find out what my blogbuds (a phrase coined by the enchanting Kathryn over at From the Inside...Out) were up to and wrote while I slept. There was a thought provoking post over at DepressionRecession that got me thinking...

Do we really appreciate, or take the time to appreciate the things that life gives us? Where we are? What we are doing? We are all so programmed to run so fast that the ol' adage of 'taking time to smell the roses' just doesn't fit into peoples lives.

Many people that I know are so consumed by getting this done, or that done, or buying this, or saving for that...that it rules their lives. They are consumed by fear. The are ruining the 'now' by projecting their fears into the future.

Now, don't get me wrong. I'm all about planning. I'm a list maker. Ask anyone who knows me...

I plan for my future, I try not to overspend. I try to be smart and think ahead. But I like to DO things. Things that will create memories... for me, and for those around me as well.

I like to slow down a bit. I'm trying to live not pressed by what others expect of me, but what I expect of myself. I'm finding that it's quite two different things. I'm trying to do a little more for me...

Which gets me back around to the busy day that I have ahead.

I've laundry to do. Bags to pack. Details to plan.

My daughter leaves for summer camp tomorrow and Mommy is going to be a mess.

No phone calls from boo. No mail. No hugs. No kisses.

For an entire week...

But right this moment, my coffee tastes good. The sun is rising. The world is quiet. And I'm smelling the roses...literally. I'm keeping my stress at bay. I've got one more day before she leaves. My daughter will be waking at any moment and calling my name. But then the cogs will start to turn and the list must be finished.

But right now. This is ME time.

And it's good.

:-)