There are so many benefits to hitting the pause button during “Little Moments” throughout your day, a moment just to actually allow yourself to notice the small stuff.

I am not sure how old you are, but I remember when TV was just TV, if you walked out of the room you could not pause your favourite show. The add breaks had people rushing off to grab a snack, go to the toilet, or tell the person next to them something they were dying to say. A bit like going to the Movie Theatre now, you either hang on, or go pee and miss part of the movie, but even with Television we tend to fast forward any advertisements, or watch our shows without adds anyway. It’s a bit like life, we just fill it with so much that we don’t want to hit pause, because if we do we might miss out on the fun, the gossip, or we just have too much to get through to have the luxury of pausing!

How with all the tech we have to help us save time, do we seem to have less and less spare time? Oh yeah, we are filling our spare time with tech! I mean I can hardly complain about technology when I am a blogger can I? I am guilty of loving so many aspects of tech, I can type away, hit publish and bam you are reading this! Pretty cool. I too am guilty of wasting a lot of time on social media, well Instagram mostly. I guess I have to ask myself how much time is wasted and how much time is ok, because I do enjoy it, so therefore if I am enjoying Instagram is it a waste of time? Something for me to ponder.

I hear so many of us saying we are too busy, that life is crazy, that we have no time for anything we enjoy, but the truth is we have time, it is just how we manage it, and what we prioritise.

Admittedly as a parent I know that time, especially quiet time can be hard to come by, and for those who work tiredness can leave us feeling we have no energy to make time for anything other than crashing in front of Netflix.

This post isn’t about finding time to go out for a shopping day, or visiting the museum though, it is about the so called “Little Moments.” By calling them Little Moments though it conjures up images of things that are meaningless, or things that we shouldn’t bother about, well I am here to say otherwise!

It is these precious moments that matter so very much, perhaps we should call them the ‘Big Moments‘, because it is in noticing these moments that we find the greatest joy and sense of what is truly important in life.

No one likes to think that they may not be here tomorrow, or maybe an even worse thought is that someone we love won’t be here tomorrow. No one likes to think what if I lost my eyesight, hearing, or the ability to walk? What if I am struck down with a horrible illness? Let’s hope that those things don’t happen! If you are to ask someone who has had tragedy strike though, they would be the first to say “appreciate and notice those precious little moments”.

Taking the time to pause throughout the day helps us notice the beauty in everyday, it helps us notice the sound of the birds we would otherwise miss, the smell in the air right before it rains, the way it feels when you snuggle with your pet, or with your child. The sound of water running, the way the cool air feels as you breathe in compared to the warmth of your breath as you breathe out. If you take the time to pause you will have the ability to drink in the beauty that surrounds you, and feel more grateful for the life you have been gifted.

So many of us think the best moments are those big holidays, or buying new things, those moments are great, but not as great as the people we enjoy those moments with. If we don’t stop to appreciate and find joy nearly every day with our child, does the big expensive holiday make up for the precious moments we missed? Another thought to ponder? Pausing allows us time to reflect, to take notice of who we are, what we want, where we are headed, and what we are truly grateful for. It allows us to know ourselves better and to reassess if we are living a life that makes us feel grateful and fulfilled. So take a few minutes, a few times a day to just pause, to reflect, to notice what you are feeling, and what you are grateful for. Ask yourself what matters most to you. If you do this you may just discover that those little moments don’t feel so little anymore.

Thanks for pondering with me today, love Mackenzie xx

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