Tuesday, March 18, 2014

Farewell to Winter Mountain

It's the moment I've been waiting for... at least until recently.

The end of winter. The beginning of spring.

I no longer wait for warm weather. I embrace the cold.

It all changed one day when I was complaining of how cold it was, and that I couldn't wait for winter to be over.  My teeth were chattering, my muscles were tense, I was freezing!

Then someone told me to live in the moment. This is something I tell people all the time. He said, "be in the moment, it's your first winter and it is different, travel to a ski resort and let it fly down the slopes."

That's when the light bulb went off.

After some quick planning, I was on a road trip to Pennsylvania with some girl friends the very next weekend. I have never skied before... at least not on snow, and definitely not successfully. I tried to ski on water once, in Colombia. I was much younger than I am now, and even then I couldn't do it. Granted, I only made one attempt. It was so disastrous that I didn't even give it a second chance. When the boat started moving, I went up and my legs were straight and parallel... for a moment. Then my legs split and the water started hitting me in my face and going up my nose at a very fast rate. It was terrible. It took me a few seconds to realize I needed to let go, or it wasn't going to stop.

Road Trip! 
When we got to the resort, I realized I had an option, and my choice was the sport in which I only had to control one board. The snow board. I started having flashbacks at my skiing experience. I thought snowboarding would be easier, and probably more fun.

Although it wasn't "easy", it was definitely enjoyable.  I immersed in every moment and witnessed it with awe. I felt there. My mind was not at home thinking about the laundry I haven't done yet, it wasn't at work thinking about all the emails I have to write. It's like my mind wasn't even there. It was just me, being there, on a mountain, sitting on a ski lift, jumping down, keeping my back straight, dropping heels, pointing toes, crashing, falling down, laughing, enjoying life and having a good time.

Girls and Snowboards

I let my worries fly down the slopes that day. I let all my frustrations with winter just slip away. I was reminded of where life really is. It's here, and now.

I still look forward to spring; to seeing the flowers and the beautiful colors. But I don't let it take away from my present experience. The snow and the white are also beautiful, and I appreciate that beauty. But that doesn't stop me from taking a weekend getaway trip to Punta Cana next!

I feel that to really experience life to the fullest, you have to be fully present. You can't experience life in the future, and definitely not again in the past. Don't think about it. Just pay attention to it. What's happening now? Are you enjoying it? If not, what can you consciously do to change it? Do that.

Life is much better in the present.