H.U.G Corner: Thought of the Week 6/1

June 1, 2018

One-Minute Retreats from a Busy World

“One ought, every day at least, to hear a little song, read a good poem, see a fine picture, and, if it were possible, to speak a few reasonable words.”

-Goethe

These are the things Goethe wanted in his day, every day. What do you want in yours?

Here is a snippet from a conversation I overheard in a busy downtown store between two middle-aged women:

“It’s so good to see you. We just don’t seem to get together as much anymore, and it seems so many of us are saying the same thing. Why is that?” said one.

“I know exactly what you mean,” said the other. “It seems that there’s always just too much going on.”

I’m convinced we all really do know what is happening to the way we are in the world, compared to the way we want to be. As the woman said, there’s always just too much going on. The problem is not what we don’t know; it’s that we somehow feel powerless to change it.

When you have begun dealing with the problem of too much going on, you can start to identify just what you want to include in your “every day.”

Even when you get together with your friend, you might discover the Goethe wasn’t far off the mark. With your friend you might hear a little song (listen to some favorite music), read of good poem (discuss an article you recently read), see a fine picture (visit a museum or show a photo of your grandkids), or speak a few reasonable words (have an enjoyable conversation, catching up on each other’s lives).

Today take some moments to decide what you want your “every day” to include. Repeat every day forever.

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