Beauty is all around us. Springtime in Virginia is spectacular with its gorgeous and rich displays of rows of purple-flowered trees, lush green grass, and brilliant orange-red sunrises. As breathtaking as these natural scenes are, we rushed and beyond busy people, sometimes miss them. We are so preoccupied with our own lives, that these amazing feats of nature get overlooked. The way many travelers sample the beautiful Skyline Drive in the Shenandoah Valley provides a perfect example. It might be the most beautiful scene that nature could conjure up, but it is only observed for seconds; only to be betrayed for the next location. These individuals never allow themselves the gift of being present to soak in the beauty and to truly experience this miraculous display of nature.
Sadly, if you think about it, that is what many people do in life with other things as well. They never truly take the time to just be. A good way to describe these individuals would be ‘the distracted.’ These individuals are the multi-taskers. If they are not busy fooling around with an application at work, texting at dinner, or waiting for that irreverent ding from their phone to tell them that yet another email is in their inbox, boredom sets in. What is worse is that when someone is talking to these individuals, it is obvious that they are thinking about the next thing on their ‘to do’ list. As you can see, no one wins in this situation or in this relationship with these types of people. This constant distraction prevents them from ever living or being able to fully share with others.
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If this describes you, then congratulate yourself for seeing the truth. The decision to change to be aware of beauty is the very first step. By noticing the way you are being, you become empowered to begin taking different actions. So then, what do you do? I am glad you asked. Gradual change is the best way to be successful. You could take one day off on the weekend. If you are really bold, you could treat this time as a sacred no social media zone. These are some simple examples, but by making the decision to see the beauty that is all around you, you get to be present and to experience life the way it was meant to be lived; in a beautiful way.
