New Year Realisations
Apparently that blur that’s just gone past me was the year 2010. How the hell did that happen? What was I doing that allowed the year to go by unnoticed?
I know I spent a lot of time on housework, ironing, cooking and being a mum. I know I wrote a few blogs and emails and had “chats” with friends and family via “Skype” and “Facebook.” I know I spent many hours outdoors soaking up the summer sun, went on walks on the foreshore or through the park with friends and shivered through the winter. I know I grew another year older and my Butterfly now has three birthdays “under her belt.” I know we became official residence at “World’s End,” went out for dinners and lunches, travelled north to visit friends, drank wine and too much coffee. I know we sang, talked, argued and discussed. I know we baked muffins, roasted chickens, moulded chocolates, had picnics in our back yard and ate far too many crumpets. I know the Mauritian changed his job description, the Butterfly discovered how to “back chat” and I learnt that getting published may be harder than I thought. I know two of my closest friends buried their fathers and my neighbour gave birth to a very well behaved little boy. I know we went shopping, paid accounts, watch television, listened to music and danced silly dances. I know I have spent endless nights dealing with a Butterfly who will not sleep and a Mauritian who battles insomnia. I know I was consumed by the first trimester of my pregnancy but what is it that kept us so busy that we allowed the year to literally just pass us by?
The truth is we spend far too much time on the menial and don’t take the time to just stop and enjoy the sights and sounds around us. For an ex Durban girl the winters at the end of the world are devastatingly cold. But the garden looks so pretty as the sun rises and reflects off the layer of frost on the ground, it sparkles like a well cut diamond. The mountain looms white and desolate but it glows pink and orange in the setting sun. We spend too much time sticking to a schedule and ensuring that all the daily tasks are done on time and nothing gets forgotten. We forget to watch our children amusing themselves with the simple joy of filling up a watering can from a pool and watering the garden that not twenty four hours earlier was soaked in 100mls of rain. We spend so much time filling in silences with the television or the radio that we miss out on the cacophony of bird song and Christmas beetles. We use up so much energy chasing that better salary, that more satisfying or challenging employment or working out how to afford that new fangled gadget that everyone else seems to have. We don’t take the time to just stop and be thankful for the roof over our heads, even though the damp seeps through the floor on very wet days. We don’t take the time to be grateful for the food we devour which is more than what some families eat in their lives. We don’t bother to respect our trusty mode of transport even though there’s a horrid crack in the windscreen and it has mismatched coloured doors. It takes us where we want to go even though we could walk there if we had to. We are too stubborn about getting our own way to just give way to others and avoiding unnecessary stress and disagreements. We are too busy living to take a moment to stop and thank God that we are alive after all He’s the reason we’re here. Life is just too short to let it pass us by, we need to burst that bubble we find ourselves floating in and hit the ground and just stop running. We need to absorb the beauty and the life that revolves around us.
So my New Year’s resolution is not to lose weight, or finally publish my book. It’s not to save money or look for work, I’m not even going to attempt to give up chocolate. No this year I’m going to leave the beds unmade and roll on the wet grass in my pjs with my Butterfly. I’m going to brave the freeze of the winter sunrise and walk on the frosted grass and listen to it crackling beneath my feet. I’m going to switch off the television and try and find that bird with the beautiful song. I’m going to puddle jump in the rain instead of doing the ironing, I’m going to lie on the grass and watch the sky, and I’m going to forget about the dishes and try and catch a butterfly. I’m going to grow sunflowers and watch the mountain change colours in the sunset. I’m going to stop and enjoy the miracle of a sunrise and a blossoming rose, I’m going to eat my food slowly and savour the taste, and I’m going to forget about washing the bath and watch my Butterfly while she plays.
This year I’m going to be grateful to wake up to a new day and another chance to enjoy being alive. This year I’m not going to waste today wishing for tomorrow. This year I want to remember with clarity all the things I do and achieve, this year will not slip me by is a blur of activity. This year I will embrace the miracle of life and really take the time to stop and smell the roses.
I know I spent a lot of time on housework, ironing, cooking and being a mum. I know I wrote a few blogs and emails and had “chats” with friends and family via “Skype” and “Facebook.” I know I spent many hours outdoors soaking up the summer sun, went on walks on the foreshore or through the park with friends and shivered through the winter. I know I grew another year older and my Butterfly now has three birthdays “under her belt.” I know we became official residence at “World’s End,” went out for dinners and lunches, travelled north to visit friends, drank wine and too much coffee. I know we sang, talked, argued and discussed. I know we baked muffins, roasted chickens, moulded chocolates, had picnics in our back yard and ate far too many crumpets. I know the Mauritian changed his job description, the Butterfly discovered how to “back chat” and I learnt that getting published may be harder than I thought. I know two of my closest friends buried their fathers and my neighbour gave birth to a very well behaved little boy. I know we went shopping, paid accounts, watch television, listened to music and danced silly dances. I know I have spent endless nights dealing with a Butterfly who will not sleep and a Mauritian who battles insomnia. I know I was consumed by the first trimester of my pregnancy but what is it that kept us so busy that we allowed the year to literally just pass us by?
The truth is we spend far too much time on the menial and don’t take the time to just stop and enjoy the sights and sounds around us. For an ex Durban girl the winters at the end of the world are devastatingly cold. But the garden looks so pretty as the sun rises and reflects off the layer of frost on the ground, it sparkles like a well cut diamond. The mountain looms white and desolate but it glows pink and orange in the setting sun. We spend too much time sticking to a schedule and ensuring that all the daily tasks are done on time and nothing gets forgotten. We forget to watch our children amusing themselves with the simple joy of filling up a watering can from a pool and watering the garden that not twenty four hours earlier was soaked in 100mls of rain. We spend so much time filling in silences with the television or the radio that we miss out on the cacophony of bird song and Christmas beetles. We use up so much energy chasing that better salary, that more satisfying or challenging employment or working out how to afford that new fangled gadget that everyone else seems to have. We don’t take the time to just stop and be thankful for the roof over our heads, even though the damp seeps through the floor on very wet days. We don’t take the time to be grateful for the food we devour which is more than what some families eat in their lives. We don’t bother to respect our trusty mode of transport even though there’s a horrid crack in the windscreen and it has mismatched coloured doors. It takes us where we want to go even though we could walk there if we had to. We are too stubborn about getting our own way to just give way to others and avoiding unnecessary stress and disagreements. We are too busy living to take a moment to stop and thank God that we are alive after all He’s the reason we’re here. Life is just too short to let it pass us by, we need to burst that bubble we find ourselves floating in and hit the ground and just stop running. We need to absorb the beauty and the life that revolves around us.
So my New Year’s resolution is not to lose weight, or finally publish my book. It’s not to save money or look for work, I’m not even going to attempt to give up chocolate. No this year I’m going to leave the beds unmade and roll on the wet grass in my pjs with my Butterfly. I’m going to brave the freeze of the winter sunrise and walk on the frosted grass and listen to it crackling beneath my feet. I’m going to switch off the television and try and find that bird with the beautiful song. I’m going to puddle jump in the rain instead of doing the ironing, I’m going to lie on the grass and watch the sky, and I’m going to forget about the dishes and try and catch a butterfly. I’m going to grow sunflowers and watch the mountain change colours in the sunset. I’m going to stop and enjoy the miracle of a sunrise and a blossoming rose, I’m going to eat my food slowly and savour the taste, and I’m going to forget about washing the bath and watch my Butterfly while she plays.
This year I’m going to be grateful to wake up to a new day and another chance to enjoy being alive. This year I’m not going to waste today wishing for tomorrow. This year I want to remember with clarity all the things I do and achieve, this year will not slip me by is a blur of activity. This year I will embrace the miracle of life and really take the time to stop and smell the roses.
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