Life is a Smorgasbord - Take Two Plates!

I'm not suggesting you eat your way through life - I'm simply encouraging you to fill up at least one plate with the bounty life has to offer. If you haven't filled your plate with walks on the beach, time spent enjoying the luscious colors of a sunset, the powerful beauty of a waterfall or something as simple as planting a sunflower in your garden, then it's time to grab a second plate and get started.

We all have a plate full of work, family responsibilities and other commitments but, for some reason, some of us believe there is a sign posted at Life's Smorgasbord that states: "Only one plate at a time, please." Well, you know what? There isn't a sign. There are no restrictions unless you create them yourself. So, grab that second plate and scoop up a big helping of sunset or whatever excites you. And don't simply admire it from afar. Move into the experience using all your senses. Imagine what a sunset would taste like, or how would it feel on your face if you walked right into it. Then imagine how a sunset would sound. Even complete and total silence can sound beautiful if you use all your senses to experience it.

Take off your sensory "blinders" and practice developing sensory "surround sound." Then you'll be able to truly experience all the pleasures life has to offer. We may have to live life in a linear fashion-but we certainly can "widen" the experience through our new "sensory surround sound."

Taste your next walk in the forest, hear the flowers absorbing the sunlight, see the incredible colors of the music you're enjoying, or imagine what the morning dew tastes like to a delicate rose. Instead of watching an eagle soar, imagine being the eagle. Don't simply live life - experience it! Life is a virtual cornucopia of wonderful experiences. If you start looking for them, you WILL find them. Where your thoughts go - your life goes. You WILL attract what you're looking for - that's just the way it works.

Are you thinking you don't have time for a second plate? Just remember this: Nobody who has reached the end of their life looks back and wishes that they had spent more time at the office. They only wish they had spent more time enjoying life. You can close your eyes for five minutes and relive a wonderful experience or memory through meditation. If you have not mastered the art of meditation, take a class to learn how or use a guided meditation or self-hypnosis audiotape or CD. Just remember to use all your senses.

Allow yourself to be pleasantly surprised by life. When I went back to the smorgasbord for my second plate, I also noticed a stack of dessert plates (called self-care). But that's for another newsletter.