One moment at a time!

I have allowed the "pressures" of life to overwhelm me lately. I realized just how much this has paralyzed me by the fact that I have now enjoyed 18 hours of calm. Seriously,I am counting my blessings in hours instead of days or weeks. One might think "how sad!". Instead I am choosing to say thank goodness!
You can only have a good day (24 hours) after you have a few good hours,which comes after a few good moments.
Life will always have its ups and downs . So what!The answer for me is how effectively I make the transition from the highs to the lows and how quickly I recover when I feel down.Wallowing is never a good thing. To be honest, unsustainable highs are problematic as well. Perspective,keeping the bar down on this roller coaster called life,is essential to finding that balance I hope to achieve.
This is true in all aspects of my life. In my diet,my workouts,my professional and my social life.Over the top usually ends up out of control.
Maybe some of this comes with age,maturity and experience.While I was never a huge risk taker, I certainly was more inclined to being overly exuberant when I was younger.That doesn't mean that I am one iota less passionate about life. Quite the contrary. With the wisdom and appreciation that I have developed over time, my passions are more defined and refined.I now understand how fleeting and fragile many of the blessings of my life are. Fortunes come and go.So do misfortunes. Opportunities are only opportunities as long as we do something with them. They must be nurtured like a delicate flower.Overwhelm them and they die. Ignore them and they wither.
It is easy to be excited by the extraordinary. It is much more inspirational to be in awe of what we pass over as mundane. Learning to appreciate the calm silence of the morning just as dawn is breaking. Listening as nature wakes to meet the new day. Sitting peacefully and watching the sky turn to hues of amber and reds ans the sunsets on another day and the world prepares for an evening of peace and a night of rest after the hustle and bustle of a busy day.
This is what thrills me now.I find great joy in the smells of the bakery first thing in the morning or the sound of the cool crisp water pulsing across clear water of my swimming pool. When stormy skies appear,I am intrigued by the rustling of the tree tops sending out a warning of the inclement weather approaching. My home s near a very busy highway. I choose to notice the silence that comes during less trafficked hours than the din of rush hour.
Extraordinary means just that...adding extra to ordinary.
So it has now been an hour since I started to write this. 19 calm hours .
Well on my way to an absolutely peaceful day!