Savoring memories
Aug/Wednesday/2009 11:53 AM Filed in: Happiness
and positive emotion
The captain announced, “We are crossing the
Rocky Mountains. If you’ll look to the south,
out to your left, you will see a ski area in the
distance. That is Angel Fire... We will be flying
directly over Taos, New Mexico.” Suddenly a
rush of emotion came over me as I looked out the
window and thought back of the memories created there
almost 20 years ago with my young family. It seems
like yesterday, truly.
I remember a snow mobile tour through one of the most beautiful natural areas I ever remember visiting, heavy fallen snow amidst evergreens laden with the snow and Rocky Mountains framing the picture. I recall the extraordinary silence when we stopped and turned off our engines and took a moment to savor the peace and beauty of nature around us in this forest.
I also remember my son getting snow in his boots and crying because his feet were wet and cold... getting back to the van and stripping him down from the layers of snow clothing to his “polypropylene” underwear/socks, which had somehow gotten wet as well. I remember the frustration and then the laughter as we struggled to “hurry up” for dad and the laughter that happens when little boys find a word they like, like “polypropylene” and say it over and over.
I remember ski lessons the boys took at Kids Ski School at Taos and how proud we all were of their accomplishments. I also remember the pain of falling backwards on the bunny slope in my own ski school and having them carry me off the slope to the first aide area!! Ouch!
I remember the video tape we took of driving up to Taos the second day, talking about how they learned to make a pizza wedge to stop, in their little boy voices, and how excited they were to go again. Capturing this with our leased camcorder, on the way up the mountain, of the boys, the snow lined streams, and evergreens turned out to be priceless!
The plane crossed over the Royal Gorge... yet another memory. The temperature was around 0 and we had heard the bridge over the gorge was a must see. We parked and ran to the bridge... I have NEVER experienced the kind of cold I felt in a matter of seconds. The wind was whipping and I thought that if I had stayed a second longer, I would be frozen in time (must have been many, many degrees below zero). We shrieked as we ran back to the warm car, laughing and talking in amazement of the gorge.
How lucky and grateful I feel to have had these experiences. No accomplishment, and I venture to say, nothing, can come close to the experience of raising a family. I will always be a mom first, no matter how far away my boys are physically... my heart and soul are with them every second of every day! I am on my way to California to lead a workshop, then to Denver for another presentation, and then off to Dublin, Ireland, for yet another. I’m excited about all the new adventures and memories that will be created, but I doubt any will ever come close to those I had raising my boys.
I have not written in my blog since the first of summer. It has been busy, filled with incredible moments. Maybe I will document them soon in one way or another... or not. Perhaps it will be 20 years before I take the time to write them down. :-)
Action step: Positive psychologists tell us that positive reminiscing and gratitude can shift our moods and be used to build positive emotion. Build a treasure chest that you can dive into when needing a boost, by keeping either a list of some of these memories or a group of photos at your desk or on your computer. Change them out on a regular basis! Happy reminiscing!
I remember a snow mobile tour through one of the most beautiful natural areas I ever remember visiting, heavy fallen snow amidst evergreens laden with the snow and Rocky Mountains framing the picture. I recall the extraordinary silence when we stopped and turned off our engines and took a moment to savor the peace and beauty of nature around us in this forest.
I also remember my son getting snow in his boots and crying because his feet were wet and cold... getting back to the van and stripping him down from the layers of snow clothing to his “polypropylene” underwear/socks, which had somehow gotten wet as well. I remember the frustration and then the laughter as we struggled to “hurry up” for dad and the laughter that happens when little boys find a word they like, like “polypropylene” and say it over and over.
I remember ski lessons the boys took at Kids Ski School at Taos and how proud we all were of their accomplishments. I also remember the pain of falling backwards on the bunny slope in my own ski school and having them carry me off the slope to the first aide area!! Ouch!
I remember the video tape we took of driving up to Taos the second day, talking about how they learned to make a pizza wedge to stop, in their little boy voices, and how excited they were to go again. Capturing this with our leased camcorder, on the way up the mountain, of the boys, the snow lined streams, and evergreens turned out to be priceless!
The plane crossed over the Royal Gorge... yet another memory. The temperature was around 0 and we had heard the bridge over the gorge was a must see. We parked and ran to the bridge... I have NEVER experienced the kind of cold I felt in a matter of seconds. The wind was whipping and I thought that if I had stayed a second longer, I would be frozen in time (must have been many, many degrees below zero). We shrieked as we ran back to the warm car, laughing and talking in amazement of the gorge.
How lucky and grateful I feel to have had these experiences. No accomplishment, and I venture to say, nothing, can come close to the experience of raising a family. I will always be a mom first, no matter how far away my boys are physically... my heart and soul are with them every second of every day! I am on my way to California to lead a workshop, then to Denver for another presentation, and then off to Dublin, Ireland, for yet another. I’m excited about all the new adventures and memories that will be created, but I doubt any will ever come close to those I had raising my boys.
I have not written in my blog since the first of summer. It has been busy, filled with incredible moments. Maybe I will document them soon in one way or another... or not. Perhaps it will be 20 years before I take the time to write them down. :-)
Action step: Positive psychologists tell us that positive reminiscing and gratitude can shift our moods and be used to build positive emotion. Build a treasure chest that you can dive into when needing a boost, by keeping either a list of some of these memories or a group of photos at your desk or on your computer. Change them out on a regular basis! Happy reminiscing!