Hi, folks! I’m bringing my blog back from the brink of death…or at least a coma. Thanks for hanging in there with me while I was focused on other things. Well, I’m back (said in my best Arnold Schwarzenegger voice) and have no excuses. I have so many blog posts that I have started, but it’s time to be about the business of following through to completion. Well, it’s time to get on to what I actually started writing today to say.
I noticed the most beautiful clouds on my flight today. They were like someone blew up the fluffiest white cotton candy that they could find and made it so dense that it looked solid. The clouds were a brilliant, bright white and looked like sculptural designs. What made this special beyond the beauty of it? The first thing is that I stopped to even open the shade on the plane to begin with. I’m a big window seat person, but that is more motivated by my desire to have some space that is decisively my own than the window itself. In today’s electronic culture, an open window shade also is an invitation for glare on my iPad. I know…another first world problem. In addition, I also had to slow down long enough to truly look and take in everything that I was seeing. I had to appreciate the curves of the clouds, the subtle shading of blue that framed it, and the way the sunlight bounced off the clouds and created shadows that gave the clouds even more texture.
This need to slow down brings me back to realizing that part of what has kept me away from my blog is the kind of all or nothing speed of my life. I’m either going full steam ahead and moving at a frantic pace, or I’ve shut down entirely. Today, I was reminded all of the wonderful things that happen when I slow down. After that lovely flight, I was able to walk in and get a massage at the spa immediately. To top that off, this was one of the best massages of my entire life. Random strangers smiled and stopped to talk to me as I walked. I felt like I might as well have the music playing and birds flying around me like Cinderella.  

When was the last time that you slowed down for something other than sleep? Let’s all take the pace down a notch, so we can mindful and grateful for each moment. If we string enough of these moments together, we have no choice but to be happy. Who doesn’t want to be happy? Make today count!
Much love,
Dr. Ericka