I've always dreaded endings -- the end of a holiday, the end of my supply of a certain type of food, the end of a car or train ride. Much to the detriment of my enjoyment. What can I say; I've always had trouble 'living in the moment.'
On the flip side, looking forward to the future is something I therefore do extremely well. I'm an excellent planner, and will plan or dream about a future event exhaustively. And while this is hardly a problem in that it's enjoyable, it too prevents me from truly enjoying what I've got when I've got it.
Finding the balance between these two, I suspect, will add something to the quality of my life. I've often found, for example, that looking forward to what comes next helps ease the pain of an impending ending. Take my current pregnancy, for example. It has made me more aware of my need to live more in the moment, and I am using it as a valuable exercise in learning to do just that in all aspects of my life.
I am enjoying this pregnancy, and as excited as I am for baby to arrive, I realized the other day that I will miss this time of leisurely anticipation. During the past six months I've been able to indulge in lots of me-time, something I know will soon become scarce. So, while I'm happy to say I have no regrets about how I've spent the past six months, I've made a point of being even more mindful of each amazing change throughout the next three months, to savour my third trimester.
This means I'll have to temper my obsessive baby product research and make purchasing decisions more quickly; it means getting out more with girlfriends and with C while feeding times and nap times are still an abstract concept, instead of nesting at home. But it also means continuing to write in my pregnancy journal, take pictures of my growing belly, and doing my pre-natal yoga. I'll even savour the few minutes I spend rubbing Palmer's stretch mark cream all over myself, instead of seeing it as a tedious added step in my morning routine.
And you know what? I feel relieved, knowing I don't need to read up on newborn care quite to the extent I was feeling I should; there will be plenty of time for that in the weeks before the birth. And of course once baby's arrived, with less time on my hands for indulging in thorough research, I'm sure I'll become three times as efficient with my time, learning everything I need to very quickly. I've also heard that once baby is born, all my priorities will shift, superfluous things will melt away into the distant periphery of my attention, and I'll find it easy to focus on what's important in the moment.
On the flip side, looking forward to the future is something I therefore do extremely well. I'm an excellent planner, and will plan or dream about a future event exhaustively. And while this is hardly a problem in that it's enjoyable, it too prevents me from truly enjoying what I've got when I've got it.
Finding the balance between these two, I suspect, will add something to the quality of my life. I've often found, for example, that looking forward to what comes next helps ease the pain of an impending ending. Take my current pregnancy, for example. It has made me more aware of my need to live more in the moment, and I am using it as a valuable exercise in learning to do just that in all aspects of my life.
I am enjoying this pregnancy, and as excited as I am for baby to arrive, I realized the other day that I will miss this time of leisurely anticipation. During the past six months I've been able to indulge in lots of me-time, something I know will soon become scarce. So, while I'm happy to say I have no regrets about how I've spent the past six months, I've made a point of being even more mindful of each amazing change throughout the next three months, to savour my third trimester.
This means I'll have to temper my obsessive baby product research and make purchasing decisions more quickly; it means getting out more with girlfriends and with C while feeding times and nap times are still an abstract concept, instead of nesting at home. But it also means continuing to write in my pregnancy journal, take pictures of my growing belly, and doing my pre-natal yoga. I'll even savour the few minutes I spend rubbing Palmer's stretch mark cream all over myself, instead of seeing it as a tedious added step in my morning routine.And you know what? I feel relieved, knowing I don't need to read up on newborn care quite to the extent I was feeling I should; there will be plenty of time for that in the weeks before the birth. And of course once baby's arrived, with less time on my hands for indulging in thorough research, I'm sure I'll become three times as efficient with my time, learning everything I need to very quickly. I've also heard that once baby is born, all my priorities will shift, superfluous things will melt away into the distant periphery of my attention, and I'll find it easy to focus on what's important in the moment.
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