To Enjoy
The sun was melting over the world late on a Saturday afternoon. I was alone but for my little brother. Sitting, my shoulders curved comfortably against the door behind me, my arms wrapped around my knees, watching Matthew singing and playing, I became suddenly conscious of a clear fact.
One must enjoy, enjoy others and oneself. It is what makes the living of life worthwhile, this enjoying, this reveling in, this finding of happiness in the simple things.
But enjoying life, despite its simplicity, also has its complications. It can be a difficult task to find something good in everything and keep yourself from thinking deceptive thoughts, not letting those things that raise your voice and your emotions cloud your brain.
Remember, remember…. It is a terribly important aspect of enjoying oneself. Remember the truth. Focus your mind not on the unpleasant thoughts and feelings that are pushing at you like an unruly crowd, but on the sun in the sky, the whispers in the breeze, the peace that rests just behind the shadow, a child holding out a smile. And remember what you’ve been given. Never forget. Remember.
Here is an exercise in enjoying oneself. Take a day, one day, and decide to enjoy yourself. Begin when you step out of bed. Focus. Make your mind stay on that one goal. Think before you speak, and notice things more.
Observe. Watch the world around you, the people who you communicate with, the way the earth is turning about you. Everything will be clear, like a whole painting with all its beauty, not turned tightly on the small defect that can only be seen beneath a magnifying glass. Do this, and the world will become a beautiful place.
Listen. Listen to the whispers on the air. Listen with your heart to the things people say. Open your ears and open your mind to the sounds. Listen to what lies, pulsing, against your heart. It keeps one’s head clear.
Take frequent moments to gasp a breath of fresh air, whether it be in a quiet room, or the warm outdoors. Close your eyes and dream, or sing a song for your ears alone. Slip away, even for a moment, to listen more closely to your heart, to let those good thoughts wash through your mind and soul. Let it keep you awake. Moments to oneself are like the rushing freshness of good food to a body only newly awakened from heavy sleep.
Does it still feel unattainable? Find a child, a small, happy child, and watch him. Nothing can kindle clarity like the contemplation of the way a child works. They go about life, seeing trouble, and finding, in the oddest places, the solution to the problem. Perhaps it is something that makes no sense to us. But it makes sense to them, and their minds are at rest. Simply, quietly, at peace.
That is why, that day, while the world went on whirling around me, I sat still where silence shared its space with the happy voice of a small child, hearing only his bright words and seeing only his darkly luminous, cloudless eyes. Simply put, life was beautiful and I was reveling in it.
Liked it
