Busyness: the state of not having your priorities where they should be.

The whirlwind we call life......

Here in the South, we have historically always known that wasting time had nothing to do with sitting on the porch swing.  When they say that things move at a slower pace down here, that has always been by design.  Until recent years, Southerners have kept certain aspects of life as a priority.  When I was kid, "visiting" was a thing.  Sunday afternoons were spent with loved ones.  A phone call was not the proper way to check up on somebody who was sick.     

Often I have attempted to admonish others to use time wisely.    To make the most of life while you can.  

I have spent many years living caught up in this whirlwind we call life.  Often I felt that if I was not being productive, that I was somehow less successful.  I understand.  I get it.  We all find ourselves wrapped up in trying to make the most of our time. Our priorities seem to be: To pay bills, to put food on the table, to buy the latest and greatest cell phone, or to buy more stuff,  more stinking stuff....... Recent events in my life have caused me to take heed to my own words, to explore more, to hug longer, to listen often, and to simply make time for people.  Time is the single most valuable part of our life. For many years I have told people to always remember that "We are only as busy as we allow ourselves to be".  Unfortunately, most of the time this was used out of selfish ambition to convince some unwary soul to venture off on a particularly difficult hike or paddle trip or some other off the wall place that I wanted to explore.  You see, "I'm too busy" is the standard go to excuse.  Somehow, I just always knew that one shouldn't always put making money as top priority. 

Busyness is nothing more than having your priorities misplaced.  In the end, we will never wish that we had spent one more day at the office nor a little more time mowing grass.  Carve out margin in your life to spend a few more minutes with your loved ones.  Place that work email on hold to call your college buddies.  Let that dang grass grow a little taller in trade for a few extra stories told over a cup of coffee with friends.  The time we have is borrowed.  Our lives are made richer by the adventures lived and the ones we share them with.  So if you find yourself in conversation with me and I tend to stick around a bit longer, to hug instead of just shake hands, or to just show up out of the blue, you should just know that I have a renewed spirit of how to spend the time that I have borrowed and that you are part of it.  

  Fill your life with adventure and people, not work and things.