In the Midst of Things

In the midst of things it’s easy to lose sight of the little things but they are the fiber of everything.

In the midst of the chaos we call life we see all of problems at a high surface level and move from one problem to the next, one task to another, one emotion to the following, and we keep going and going. We go on for so long and at such a high-speed that getting lost doesn’t feel lost at all, it feels normal to hush the details so we can keep going in the tornado we’ve created.

The absence of the little things is small at first. It’s in a quick hello with nothing to follow, a little hug to greet someone or to hug when they’re leaving your sight but you’re too busy to stop and wrap your arms around them. It’s in an acknowledgement of their existence with asking about their day but not listening. There’s a difference in listening to hear and learn and listening to have banter. The banter is disguised as a conversation when you’re doing something else.

Live in the moment for one second and think about the people in your life that you love. They’re magical, aren’t they? Do yourself a favor and list them on a piece of paper. Can you recall the last time you thanked them for being in your life and told them so?

You can’t say miracles don’t exist when you stop to acknowledge the love that exists around you. The only trick is stopping to see it and feel it. FEEL is key. You have to feel everything. Sure the feels might make you sad but they’ll bring you peace and joy more than the sadness brings you. Life is about surviving them both. Knowing the highs aren’t permanent and the lows aren’t either.

In life you’ll lose people, you’ll lose moments, and you’ll eventually lose parts of you that you won’t get back unless you are willing to look at them and work your way out of the discomfort that they make you feel. Those damn feelings, they’ll get you if you don’t pay attention to them and they’ll get you if you do. It’s best to just get it out-of-the-way and face them.

Those little things are the monumental points where the meat of life exists and it’s sadly where things get lost when we’re in the trenches focusing on putting out fires instead of focusing on living for what’s happening in that exact moment.

The hug to your child, parent, friend, spouse, or anyone else in your life is a small but profound moment where you can take make yourself out of the chaos and into the love that you exist for. If nothing else, remember this one thing: The people that are everything in your life are the people who get lost when we lose ourselves in the midst of things.

Huge shout-out for this prompt to my amazing writing coach, Angela Burton. And another huge shout-out to my friend Anna May for capturing the photo above last night. I don’t know where I’d be without the wonderful women in my life. Thank you to infinity and back.