It’s 20:30. The kitchen is clean. Dishwasher is running. I’m quietly ending my day with a nice warm cup of lemongrass tea. This is a nice moment for me. Liam is asleep. Nadine is running downstairs on the treadmill in our gym. I enjoy this moment because i have time to think, time to write and listen to music. I don’t do this often but i will.
Today i was home. I worked from home. I did house stuff. I did a bit of professional work but mostly i cleaned up my desk, i made space. This week, i changed. I decided to slow down.
I’m very happy with the life i have lived so far. It is filled with love and passion. As time passed in the last decade, i got involved with things here and there and my life became filled with so many things that i loved, things that made me happy, things that gave me pleasure but things that took time. In 2014, i managed my life as an eternal and infinite to-do-list. Like many people, i have felt trapped in a race against time to do all the things that need to be done.
Recently, i realized that doing more things does not bring more enjoyment in my life because it takes away time. Time is precious. A friend of mine died recently and he was younger than me. Someone close to me learned she got cancer and will need chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Events in my life constantly remind me of this simple truth. I must repeat this because it feels so important to me: time is precious.
This morning, i took the time to walk with my son to school and it brought me so much joy and happiness. At lunch time, i went to get him and i brought him home to share a meal. This is a great privilege and it has nothing to do with money and things, it just has to do with being present and sharing simple moments together.
Tonight, i understand that i do not need to be a hero or a champion of many things outside of my home, i just need to be a hero for my own family and to be this special person, i must take more time to talk, to walk and to share simple moments with the people i love.
Happiness is about being together. Happiness is about spending time together.
Time is the most precious thing in the world. And i can make more of it by simply slowing down. Today, there is a new objective in my life: to do less so i can do more of the things that really matter.
Original post Facebook, February 2015
Martin Pham Dinh 