I have three children. At any point in time, one tends to be an overachiever, one tends to be anxious or worried, and one tends to dwell with some resentment on the past…
The other day, after some morning chaos at home, I drove them to school and gave them an admittedly rambling lecture on “being present”. I said something like:
- While we can reflect on the past and learn from our failures, we should not dwell on regrets about the past;
- While we can be excited about the future and think about it’s opportunities, we should not miss enjoying things today because we are too busy worrying or being anxious about the future;
- Instead, we need to try to stay focused on the present, what we are doing now, what we are feeling, being aware of the people and beauty around us;
- Life doesn’t happen in the future or in the past but HERE and NOW, so we should try to stay focused on the here and now and truly enjoy every moment – we don’t want to miss it – we want to be present in our life!
I wasn’t proud. I felt like my ad lib description had been a bit rambling and had not likely landed for my kids. Then, to my amazement, my youngest, who I thought to have been barely listening from the backseat, said, “It’s like the peace reflection we said this week!”
“What?” I asked, surprised she might have heard let alone comprehended what I had said.
“Well, every morning this week on the school announcement system they have read a poem that says:
Yesterday is History,
Tomorrow’s a Mystery,
Today is a Gift,
That’s why it’s called the Present”
I picked my jaw up from the floor and swerved back onto the road!
My son confirmed, since he was the kid doing announcements at school, this was indeed the poem he had read over the loudspeakers all week. We were able to discuss ideas as a family of how to remind ourselves to be focused on the present and treat as many moments as possible “a gift”. We could appreciate big things and small in nature, be even more aware of the people around us, be conscious and aware of our feelings and our actions. It was a great and lively discussion!
It was yet another moment where I was so appreciative to be spending precious time with my children instead of rushing frantically to work.
Interestingly, when I dropped my kids off at school, my youngest asked me to walk her to her classroom. Being in the moment, I agreed and we walked hand-in-hand through the school grounds.
When we reached her classroom, I knelt down to say goodbye to her. She gave me a big hug and even a kiss, something she rarely does in public. Then, as she walked away she turned and called out “I love you, Daddy!” and continued on her way…
…Mindfulness certainly has it’s privileges!
