Learn How to Enjoy the Journey

There always gonna be another mountain
I’m always gonna wanna make it move
There’s always an uphill battle
Sometimes I’m gonna have to lose
It ain’t about how fast you get there
Ain’t about what’s waiting on the other side…
It’s the climb.

~ Miley Cyrus

Today was a good day.  I was actually supposed to write this blog on Saturday.  I am supposed to be working on lesson plans right now, but today was everything it was supposed to be.  I figured I would blog because there is no better time than the present.

I am self-reflective by nature – a natural problem solver.  The beginning of the school year always brings out what really matters in life.  I go from days filled with doing whatever it is I feel like doing (and whatever it is I do not feel like doing) to managing every spare minute.  I try to figure out how to get everything done and get much needed rest in the process.  If nothing else, this past week has taught me how to enjoy the journey. It was a week of invaluable lessons that I will now share.

1.) STOP WORRYING.

I know this is easier said than done.  I am certainly not foolish enough to believe that worry stops simply because you will it to do so.  I also know, however, that people question my blind faith.  I hear the sincerity in their voices when they comment on how much they wish they could give it all to God the way that I do.  As usual, I preface this entire segment by noting that I recognize I am far from perfect, and much of this blog is as much for myself as it is for anyone that reads it.  However, with all of the constant demands that life places on me, combined with a brain that runs a million miles a minute with endless thoughts of the next thing I should be doing, I have little time to concern myself with items I cannot control.  Therefore, my faith, my blind belief that God is going to work things out comes not necessarily from this fundamentally intricate relationship with God (although I would love to believe that people see some Jesus in me).  It comes more from the fact that I do not have time to waste worrying about the things I CAN control much less those that I cannot.  I spend hours in conversations with my husband, and my sister, and my best friends. I almost feel like a parrot as I squawk out the same overstated theme.  “Pray about it, and let it go.”

2. ) DO WHAT YOU LOVE.

I know I spent an entire blog post dedicated to “me” time, but I cannot overemphasize the countless hours we spend doing things out of obligation.  I am not saying to stop taking the kids to their games on the weekends and the dozens of practices throughout the week. I am saying stop doing things out of some self-inflicted sense of duty.  If you have read anything that I have ever written, you will note that cleaning is not my forte, and I beat myself up about it.  Why can’t I just be one of those moms who cleans because they love it?  Why can’t I clean to clear my mind?  And I am doing better…but there is always something else I would rather be doing – ALWAYS.  So I clean just enough to take the edge off, mop just enough, vacuum just enough, and wash just enough base boards. For what? The only person who really cares whether or not the house I clean is me.  How is that for ironic?  My husband and two children could not care less so why again am I stressing?

I have spent the past few days rededicating time to my 4-year old son, reconnecting with once close friends, making sure to call those who are still close. Why?  Because that is what I love; that is who I love; that is what I want to spend my time doing.  My son and I played “no more monkeys jumping on the bed” where we take turns jumping off the bed and laying out while singing, “10 little monkeys jumping on the bed.  One fell off and bumped his head….”  Once we get down to no monkeys, we start over.  I realized today that while it started as me making sure he knew I cared enough to set aside time for him, the hour of 4-year old childlike humor probably meant more to me than it ever will to him.  I smiled this weekend when he reminded me, “Remember that time we played pillow fight.  That was fun!” and he squealed with delight just at the memory.  And all at once I understood.  Those moments.  Those little nuggets of time where you do exactly whatever it is that you want to do.  Those moments are what life is all about.  Those moments are how you enjoy the journey.

(In case you were wondering whether I live in complete filth)

3.)  EXERCISE. 

Bahahahahaha!  I know it goes against every bone in my body to write this after “do what you love.”  I will not get into all of the science of the benefits of exercise.  We all know it is good for us both physically and psychologically.  What I will say is that it does not take giant lifestyle changes to accomplish.  People have this idea in their head that they have to have the perfect clothes, shoes, and mindset.  They have to go to a gym with specific classes and training regimens.  All of these ideas are absolute nonsense.  If you can go to the gym, by all means, do what you do, but as the wife of a football coach with two small children and a smaller bank account, the gym is OUT!  Do not get me wrong.  I LOVE the gym when I can get there.  Those classes give you something extra that home workouts just cannot do.  However, youtube is my fitness provider.  I just type in “exercise” and do whatever it is I feel like doing that day.  Sometimes I go for 20 minutes.  Sometimes I go for an hour.  The confidence that exercise gives a person, though, is amazing. Knowing at the end that you will look great and, even better than that, feel great does wonders for the confidence, self-esteem, and overall demeanor.

4.)  FIND YOUR PURPOSE.

I once put up a picture during Spirit week of me in a superman shirt captioned, “I teach.  What’s your superpower?”  I had seen the caption on a shirt somewhere, and I thought it was cute.  The response to the picture was overwhelming.  People poured out their own “super powers” – their own purposes.  Knowing that you are exactly where you are supposed to be, knowing that you are doing exactly what you are supposed to be doing – that is life’s greatest gift.

As  my blog time comes to a close, I’ll finish where I began.

The struggles I’m facing
The chances I’m taking
Sometimes might knock me down, but
No I’m not breaking
I may not know it, but
These are the moments that
I’m gonna remember the most…

~ Miley Cyrus, “The Climb”

Until next time, keep learning to enjoy the journey. Keep climbing, and of course keep on living oridinary life – extraordinarily.

***

What are some ways that you enjoy the journey?

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