Paying for Lovely Moments

Richard Bach one said, "The best way to pay for a lovely moment is to enjoy it." I think he was saying that we all have a finite number of moments and when we live in a distracted manner, it comes with a price. We miss what is right in front of us and we have one less moment to live.

Distracted driving has been getting its due. You see it every day on the road. So do I. But what about distracted living? It doesn't quite have the same negative connotation, does it? Mostly because the only one who is paying the price for it is the person who is engaged in it, but I don't think we should overlook the detriments of distracting living. 

I visit my 81-year-old mother on Saturday afternoons and I have dinner with her most Thursday nights. That's 104 opportunities, with a few exceptions for various reasons, to spend time with her. I know those opportunities will cease one day, so I'm trying to be fully present during those moments, setting my phone down so we can engage. 

This fall, my friends and I will have maybe 10 opportunities to sit around the fire pit on Friday evenings. We'll cook some burgers, play a little music, listen to the fire snap and pop, and talk. Some of the best conversations I've had have come during those moments. I don't want to check out by thinking about my concerns for the upcoming week.

My great-nephew is three years old already. Every time I see him (one or twice a week), he's saying or doing something new. We laugh, sing, play, and snuggle. That won't always be the case.

The best way for me to pay for these lovely moments is to enjoy them. To enjoy them, I have to be fully present for them. That's my goal. If you see me living otherwise, remind me about what I'm missing.