Finding your Zen

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Three things happened to me this past week that gave me pause: 1. I saw a movie in the middle of the afternoon with a friend. 2. I bought a new book. 3. My husband got the stomach flu. not necessarily in that order… Why are these things important? Because they made me take a step back and look at what’s important in my life.

Three things happened to me this past week that gave me pause:

1. I saw a movie in the middle of the afternoon with a friend.

2. I bought a new book.

3. My husband got the stomach flu.

not necessarily in that order…

Why are these things important? Because they made me take a step back and look at what’s important in my life.

First, the book. A friend enthusiastically recommended the book, “Eat, Pray, Love,” a book that I had heard about, but ignored, because I assumed it was the latest “book de jour” that people like because they think they are supposed to like it. Anyway, I bought it, opened it and finished it in three days. Not to ruin it for the masses, but essentially this woman is on a quest for inner peace and her journey is inspiring…which leads me to item #2…

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I went to a movie in the middle of the afternoon on Friday. When I found a whole Friday stretched before me with no kids in sight, my first thought was to sit down and tackle a growing number of articles with impending deadlines. Instead, in the spirit of “Eat, Pray, Love,” when my friends suggested a movie, I jumped! Surprisingly, the world didn’t fall out of it’s orbit…which brings us to item #3…

My husband caught the stomach flu and has been in bed all weekend. Again, deadlines loomed, but I found myself pulling single parent duty to not two, but three (counting my husband) kids. Strangely, instead of worrying about something I could do nothing about, I hit the pause button on my life and spent my time frolicking with my kids outdoors, lovingly bringing ginger ale to hubby and basically releasing control.

That’s when it hit me… It’s all about your inner Zen…finding your own place of calm, your own sense of living in the moment…asking yourself what you want to do and then just doing it. It also occurred to me that green living is more than just harmoniously living with the environment…It is also about harmoniously living with oneself.

Bonny Osterhage, White Apricot Staff Writer