Can we turn the conversation around for a minute?
- Andrew Edstrom
- Mar 17, 2020
- 4 min read
Life requires balance, so to infuse a different perspective, I say it is a time to tell stories. A time to appreciate what you have, a time to share something to create positive momentum and not paralysis.
May I suggest we look forward to the notion that better days are coming. Better days when the world opens its arms again and embraces change, healing, togetherness and shared experiences. Those days are coming, so why not start that mindset today? Reflect on the past to help shape the future.
I'll start.................
Remember humans’ best friend? That furry fuzzball whom frolics to and fro in all your misadventures. The fuzzball emits unconditional love that knows no boundaries, it will follow you to all ends of the earth, will nuzzle you when you are feeling down, it will play, it will listen, it will lead, and it will follow. It knows nothing of mass hysteria, it just wants to be part of something. So, give your fuzzball and extra treat today, it deserves it, it earned it.
Remember to that time you paused? Remember when you took the time to waste a moment? In that moment, nothing really mattered except appreciating the thoughts and emotions that entered your body. Maybe nothing did, and that is ok too. In a world of chaos, make room for silence.
Remember that time on the lake? The steady bobbing of the waves, or the silence on a glassy body of water…….., times when the catching a fish did not really matter…….., what mattered was the moment. Be it silence or sharing the scenery with your best friends. Laughing about jokes we’ve all heard 1,000 times but we laugh anyway……, and we laugh together. The eagles above laughed along with us. A screeching laugh it was, and who knows, it could have been laughing at us and our poor fishing form. What is this creature who bobs on a hunk of metal and uses sticks and strings to catch dinner, says the eagle? A real fisher watches, waits and seizes the moment.
Remember that trail you hiked? That old man you met on the boat ride over to the trail head. Remember how he who poured in knowledge and insight of his favorite places in the Sierras? Remember how you vigorously scribbled notes to capture the cornucopia of facts he just bestowed upon you? He spoke with vigor and vim through years of experience and shared his plan. Ten days hiking a portion of the John Muir Trail with a target location on a specific lake with good fishing. Remember how you thought to yourself, wow, I hope I can have that kind of plan at that age? And as he we walked away………, little did he know…………, an impressionable man watched him wander off and simply said, “thank you kind sir, you are amazing.”
Remember that other hike you took? The one where the day was near perfect and near the end, you turned a corner and was stunned by moment in time. A view only fathomable in a movie or a dream, yet there you were. Standing in the midst of nature’s majesty. And you have since returned, and you will do so again!
Remember that road you drove on? Remember a moment you shared with a little creature in his world, in his moment? In the depths of the Canadian Rockies a little goat stood resolute with his kingdom reaching towards the skies and to the horizon…… he paused enough to share his moment with you. You are grateful he did. He has an amazing place to live and you said to him, “Thank you my friend, I shall return.”
Remember when you just read something for fun? Perhaps it is time to try that again and get lost in a story to faraway places or forgotten lands or relive moments in history.
Remember those bears? Ohhhhhh the bears of Kodiak Island. Some of the largest bears on earth, they are, and majestic they will always be. These 1,500-pound lumbering giants are fascinating to watch. They face a consistent battle with time to put on weight to sleep the winter away. Some days the fish are so plentiful, they nap in a salmon induced food coma and dream of the berries ripening on the hillsides above. One moment was particularly priceless. A young cub, one of two, watched intently and curiously as mother swept the depths of the river in search of delectable quarry.
Remember to smile, laugh and be silly. Enough said.
Remember that moment that struck you? Was it her, was it him, was it It, what it time, was it something else? Whatever it was, it matters only to you. You hold that memory, that moment and nothing in the realm known to man can take that from you. It forever resides in your soul. So, recall it, share it if you choose……. And if you do….. joy begets joy. It’s safe to say, we could use more of that right now. My moment was walking outside one winters eve and the sky was alive with majestic colors served on a plate of snow and water. It was delicious. The air was still, the moment was brilliant. What moment would you be willing to share?
We are drifting through uncharted waters. I send this as a message of hope for people to stay healthy both physically and mentally….. In hope that we share more than just the bad news……, that together we can steer ourselves towards some positivit……... In the midst of it all……, we can’t control the direction of the wind, but we can adjust our sails.
Pass it on, share your stories, shed some light on these times.
May good fortune find you.
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