Think Different

“Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes…”

I wrote this post a few days ago, but saved it in my draft folder. Almost as if I hadn’t finished with it, almost as if I needed to read someone else’s perspective. And then I stumbled upon a blog post that so closely mirrored how I was feeling that it took my breath away. The author captured that moment when we are suddenly aware of our surroundings: the mud beneath our feet, the clouds in the sky, and the various sounds the wind makes.

I realized that there was something I had left out in my own post: gratitude. And I am thankful.

I am in Phoenix, Arizona, sighing with pleasure as I bask in the sun and stare at a robin’s egg blue sky. It looks like someone has stretched cotton batting across its surface, so I am playing a game of “What Shape Is It?” I used to play this game when I was little, but I can’t remember the last time I gave myself permission to play it. When my kids were small, maybe?

One of the shapes looks like the Snow Queen from Hans Christian Anderson has spread her arms wide in her quest to reach the heavens.

The sad truth is that I don’t allow myself the luxury of playing creative games like this, now that I’m a grownup. Or, at least, not very often. Why not? The obvious answer is that I consider them to be a waste of time – time that could be better spent cleaning, preparing meals, or writing.

In short, I could be doing something more productive.

So, it’s clearly time to “think different”. In that light, here is today’s intention: I will take at least 5 minutes every day to merely observe. Whether it’s a snow-capped mountain in Phoenix, or a snow-covered hill in my backyard in Toronto, I will rest from the need to do.

Because if something lifts your spirits – like watching a sunset that would take your breath away, or flakes of snow sliding down your kitchen window – then what in the world could be more productive than that?

And let me add another intention: I will practice being grateful. Gratitude will be the first thing I choose to embrace each morning, rather than choosing to focus on my to-do list.

And, lastly, I will count my blessings, rather than keeping a list of grievances.

Because, when all is said and done, I have a pretty good life.