A little note regarding embracing the spice of life.  There was a story about a woman who carried a bikini around in her bag in case the inclination and opportunity to swim ever hit her—she wanted to be ready.  Her joy was swimming and she wanted to be prepared to partake in the joy whenever she had the opportunity.  There’s something a little romantic in that, thinking of the joy we embrace in the moment.   That is taking in the journey.  There is no hesitation, no inhibition, just unfettered truth and unbridled happiness and contentment.  I want to reiterate something I started to talk about earlier this week which is how seriously we take this life.  No, I wouldn’t advocate for aimlessly wandering and floundering through life, throwing darts hoping something sticks. But I would NEVER advocate for taking life so seriously that we miss the point which is to live.  While cliché, it remains true that we will not live forever and whatever we accumulate on this Earth, whether accolades or material possessions, we can’t take them with us when all is said and done.  With that in mind, it almost makes more sense to carry the bikini with us every day than it does to leave it at home. 

I think that part that sticks out the most for me is the part about experiencing the journey.  I’ve always been one of those destination people, meaning, get me to where I need to go ASAP. While traveling I’ve even thought to myself, “I don’t care that I’m seeing xyz, I came here to see A.”   It never really dawned on me to want to see things on the way to where I was trying to go.  Sure I’d see some cool stuff but I never wanted to slow down and look at anything because we had places to go and if we had time to come back we’d see it later.  There are times it’s necessary to keep moving but there really is all the time in the world to slow down and truly see what’s around us.  We spend so much time focused on movement and winning, often forgetting the simple things like conversation, walks in nature, dinner with friends.  If we rush through all of that we miss a lot of life.  And there is a LOT of life in this world.  We’re meant to experience it and we’re meant to partake in it.  If something catches our fancy, why not take the cue and follow it?  The spice of life is found when we find the nuances buried in certain experiences.  Take the opportunity, find the passion, find the joy—and always have that bikini ready 😊