Are you always racing to catch up?

As a busy friend of mine once put it, talking about running her farm and her young family, “Some days I meet myself coming back!” 

And you can actually get caught up in the excitement of this busyness, following your to-do list, doing this, doing that, having to do this or that  - driven … and completely miss out on what you’d really like to do!

What is this life if, full of care,

We have no time to stand and stare?

- Leisure by William Henry Davies

That would be a huge loss indeed!

And to celebrate the season, and (to be honest) to celebrate my own joy in observing the marvels of the countryside around me and its ability to get me off the treadmill, I’m charging you with a task!

TAKE THE REST OF THE DAY OFF!

Impossible? Then take some of the day off.

Can’t do that? Take an hour off.

No, far too busy? Take the rest of the day off, urgently.

You need to stop, unwind, regroup, recharge … You need time for yourself.

And in that time, you can think of what you actually WANT to do from your to-do list! And how you can get rid of the rest.

And because it’s such a lovely thought, here’s the rest of that poem I started above:

What is this life if, full of care, We have no time to stand and stare?

No time to stand beneath the boughs, And stare as long as sheep or cows.

No time to see, when woods we pass, Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass.

No time to see, in broad daylight, Streams full of stars, like skies at night.

No time to turn at Beauty's glance, And watch her feet, how they can dance.

No time to wait till her mouth can Enrich that smile her eyes began.

A poor life this if, full of care, We have no time to stand and stare.

Take that day off, stand and stare - enjoy the wonderful world around us - and let me know how you felt afterwards! Comment below or tell me privately here.