In the Moment

 

Monday & Tuesday, I made a quick trip to Mt. Vernon, IA (my hometown). It was wonderful to visit with my parents and my sister's family. There was lots of fun (e.g., laughter, meals, round-table ping pong, sharing stories), yet my main intention for the trip was to help my dad. My parents recently moved from the house I grew up in to a new condo in the same town. This is a positive move, but the process of cleaning out a house filled with 40 years of memories (and stuff) is daunting. So I wanted to help; and I wanted to spend time with my dad.

Over a short period of time, dad and I accomplished many meaningful tasks at both the old house and the new house. Yesterday afternoon, we made one last trip to the old house (dad wanted  juice glasses, the hose, a lamp, and I wanted  clippings from the lilac bush--a bush that originally came from a cutting of my grandma's lilac bush back on my dad's childhood farm in Michigan). 

It was a beautiful day, and dad wanted to clean the hose before we returned to the new house. I was tired and felt a little tug of impatience, since I wanted to get back to Appleton at a reasonable hour. Luckily, I had the clarity to see this impatience for what it was: a fleeting thought from ego that was obstructing my enjoyment of the present moment.

Here was the reality: It was a gorgeous day; I was in the presence of my dad, whom I love unconditionally with my whole heart, respect deeply, and like immensely; and, really, we had all the time in the world. So I relaxed into the moment. I drank in the sunlight and the connection with my dad--now I'll always remember the time we cleaned the hose in March 2012. And I took some photographs. (Thanks, Cococita, for the "beauty in the everyday" prompt!) 

It doesn't get much better than a beautiful spring day spent with someone you love.