Happy New Month :-).
We are already in October, only two months to go and we bid 2015 kwaheri. This year has flown by so fast but I'm grateful to God for the abundant grace to get through most of what I had put my mind to when it started. Have I accomplished everything? Of course not!! Till we get to December 31st 11.59:59, I still have time to wrap up my 2015 projects..or so I encourage myself.
At times, we rush through life trying to get things done and ensure that we provide a comfortable life for ourselves & families that we forget to stop, take a deep breathe and just let the cold air make its way through our lungs slowly. I'm guilty of getting so caught up in the rat race that is my day to day life that more often than not I've lost sight of what is important. It got so bad that for a long time I operated like a zombie, wake up - grind - study - eat - sleep & the cycle begins again. All this changed though. One day while on my way home there was so much traffic and we were stuck for about an hour plus on the same stretch - a stretch that takes about 5 minutes on the max to cover. Now, if you spend the entire day sitting in the office...the last thing you need is to endure sitting in traffic for more than an hour. I was irritated, I ranted online & got angry but all this was in vain coz we still weren't moving.
I figured, getting annoyed wasn't helping me much so I got offline, put my phone away, took in a deep breathe & looked out the window. It was already dark but the floodlights along the street had it well lit, it looked so beautiful {Hadn't noticed the new floodlights as I always pass the stretch before it gets dark}. Looking out the window provided the much needed relief, I got fascinated just looking at people going about their business. Some walking very fast as if they were late for an important engagement, others strolling while excitedly chatting with friends, some guy roasting maize & talking animatedly with his customers and another random guy trying to convince a driver why he needed to purchase his merchandise. I found myself smiling & really enjoying the scenery - I had drifted to this happy space, I was in a world of my own I even forgot about the traffic. Suffice to say, I had to snap out of it when I heard the Makanga yelling, "harakisheni kushuka hatutangoja mtu, utapitishwa" {Hurry up if you are alighting we won't keep waiting for you}. I was almost at my stage and as I alighted, I thought of the many times we get so caught up with life that we have no time to stop and smell the flowers, appreciate the chirping birds early in the morning or just marvel at how the universe is - God's handy work. I made a mental note to get off that rat race and live life one moment at a time. Not ranting & raving anytime there is an interruption in the rat race - a delay/detour/inconvenience etc.
Getting off the rat race also meant making time to take stock of my life. {"Taking stock - to think carefully about a situation or event and form an opinion about it so that you can decide what to do".}. I had a lot to think and sift through - some sort of spring cleaning. What did I discover in the process? A lot to be grateful for, connections/relations that needed to be strengthened & others cut off, baggage that needed to be dropped asap & attitudes that needed to be changed, I basically had to declutter my life as a matter of urgency so as to travel light. After taking stock, I came up with a few "resolutions" (for lack of a better word). Read On.
1. Intentional Living. Crystal Paine says "Living with intention means saying no to the things that aren't important to us so we can say yes to what matters most. I decided to be intentional in all I do. I consciously & soberly sifted through my life and got rid of any activities, friendships/acquaintances and attitudes that were not helping my journey through life.
"Intentional living is the art of making our own choices before others' choices make us", Richie Norton.
"Impact is never about knowing all the steps ahead, but about taking one intentional step after the other", Bidemi Mark-Mordi.
2. 3L's - Live, Laugh, Love. Life is too short to take it too seriously. I now don't let things get to me easily. What we normally call catching feelings. I used to be an expert in catching feelings. Let alone catching feelings, I would hug them & get 'em glued on lol. Things that would send me through the roof with rage before, now make me smile & leave me thinking #ItsNeverThatSerious moving on, I'm way past that. I have learnt the art of dancing as though no one is watching; loving as though I've never been hurt {this is a serious WIP}; singing as though no one can hear me & living as though heaven is on earth. No one is responsible for my happiness but me so I'm gonna make me happy :-).
3. Keep Learning & Growing. I've learnt to look at every experience that comes my way as an opportunity to learn and grow.
"Every lesson has it's costs and it is always costlier when it is not learnt, for it will repeat itself again at higher costs', Jensen Siaw.
4. Gratitude. I always remember to be grateful for life and whatever it is that I have. I may not be where I want to be career-wise/academic-wise/ relational-wise but as I work to getting there, I am grateful.
"Gratitude can transform common days into thanksgiving, turn routine jobs into joy and change ordinary opportunities into blessings", William Arthur Ward.
1 Thessalonians 5:18 "Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."
5. Me Time. Finally. I know this sounds so selfish, but hey just try it and see why it is a good thing to do. Don't be too busy with life and trying to make others happy that you lose track of yourself and who you are. It may get to a point where you will look in the mirror and the reflection looking back at you is not what you are used to. You were too busy to notice that change was taking place.
