Thoughts and Ponderings
Taking Time To Enjoy The Gifts of Life
It’s that time of year, one ending and the possibilities that come with the birth of a new year. I love to look back and see what the passing year has taught me and this year has been rich in lessons and transformation. I’ve lost someone very dear to me, I’ve seen my own family go through big transitions and I’ve woke up to the fact that life can change in an instant.
Knowing that life can change in the blink of an eye isn’t a new awareness, it’s just that this year I really experienced it. The person I shared my counseling office with for the last dozen years died suddenly. He and I weren’t close friends, the fact that we shared an office meant he was there when I wasn’t and, up until we changed office locations back in 2009, we hardly saw or spoke to each other. Once we were in the new office he’d call me about this or that and then he called one day for a referral to someone to create a website for his art. Seems Dave had started doing sculptures and he was looking to cut back on his counseling practice and give more time to his art. He was so excited about what he was doing and when I saw the first piece he did I was amazed, he really was an artist! Then last August he went backpacking on Mt. Shasta and died during a hike.
It was very comforting to know that Dave left the planet doing something he loved doing and I’m glad he left in such a peaceful way. As time as gone on I actually miss him more and his energy seems to still be in the office. It was his office, with me as a renter and his leaving forced me to decide what I really wanted to do. It was easy to just have the office there and see a few clients a week but if I was going to have the office by myself I’d need to stand on my own two feet and make more of a commitment to counseling practice. And, as soon as I decided to keep the office I started getting phone calls for appointments. It was amazing. I didn’t do anything different then I’d been doing except make a decision to have my practice be something more then this thing I did on the side and it was.
Something else in me was triggered with Dave’s passing… my own mortality. So when I got knocked off my feet by some strange illness a few months back it really scared me. The doctor couldn’t figure out what it was. I didn’t have a life threatening illness, I was suffering from the effects of physical neglect and my body was out of energy. It reminded me of a time when my car just stopped running and I was embarrassed when the mechanic said, “you were out of oil, didn’t you check your oil?” No I didn’t check my oil and I wasn’t checking in with my body either or giving it what it needed to stay healthy. This illness was a warning light. The universe saying, value your life or you might not get another second, second chance.
Life is a very sweet gift. We see it in the faces of newborns and we feel it when those who have touched our hearts leave us. Life is for living today and not putting off anything until tomorrow, if possible. It’s too short to hide behind fears or play victim to avoid taking hold of life with all you have and living it with joy and enthusiasm.
This is not the article I thought I was going to write and it is funny how Dave seems to be coming through in my words. I miss that I didn’t get to know him better. Didn’t spend more time on the phone with him when he’d call for this or that. He’s one of those gifts in life that I wish I’d taken more time to enjoy.
Barbara Williams is the Editor of Balanced Life Magazine and shares her personal thoughts and ponderings in the hopes that others can relate and see a bit of themselves in what she writes. Barbara is also a Counselor and Hypnotherapist, available for private and phone sessions, which focus on connecting with inner resources for greater self-acceptance, compassion and clarity. She also offers private past life regression sessions and a monthly past life regression group. Call (916) 965-7751
