August 31st, 2009 by Daryl Furuyama
7 Ways I Enjoy the Moment
Although I tend to focus on goals and the future, I do take the time to enjoy the moment. I breathe in, focus on my sensations, and exhale. In the moment I feel happy.
There are a few simple things in my life when I cannot help but to feel really good. When they happen, I take a breath, focus on the good feelings, and feel at peace. It’s meditation on a micro-scale. Here are 7 ways I enjoy the moment:
- Taking a shower after a long run: I ran track in high school and I am currently training for a 5k to help fight human trafficking (my girlfriend will be doing the swimming portion). It’s probably the rush of endorphins from the run, but I love taking a slightly cooler than normal shower after a long run in the heat of Southern California. While the water is rushing over me, I close my eyes, breathe in, and feel the tingling sensation over my body.
- Savoring my food at a nice restaurant: I’ve noticed that nicer restaurants usually have smaller portions of really awesome food. Closing your eyes and breathing in actually enhances the flavor because you can focus more on the taste. My favorite is the foie gras and Japanese eggplant at Orris on Sawtelle.
- Waking up to the sound of rain: It doesn’t snow much here in LA (I was 4 the last time and had to go to school that day), so the closest thing we have to seasonality is rain. It is always a pleasant surprise to wake up to the sound of rain. Gloomy weather always reminds me of the beach for some reason.
- Feeling an autumn breeze: Towards the Fall, we get dry-cool Santa Ana winds that blow through. It makes me deeply happy to feel the cool autumn breeze as the sun warms my skin. I also like watching mini-cyclones twirling the leaves because we used to call them “tornadoes” when we were kids.
- Being outside as the sun goes down in the summer: I live in the Valley, so it gets ridiculously hot during the day (up to 110 F). Later in the day (around 7), the temperature begins to drop and the sky turns orange or pink. It’s especially wonderful if I’m driving to hang out with friends at that time.
- Listening to the sound of cars passing at night: I do most of my meditation before I go to sleep and the sound of car passing by while I’m trying to clear my mind is interesting. It reminds me of the times in college I would pull an all-nighter to finish a paper. The sound of passing cars reassured me there were still people when everyone else was sleeping.
- Smelling the outdoors after a rain: I really love everything about the rain, except driving in it. I especially love the smell outside after a rain. It’s even better if there’s a hint of smoke from a fireplace in the air. (On a related note, there have been some fires here in LA, but I don’t like that kind of smoke)
Sometimes it is easy to focus on the difficult things. I take the time to enjoy the moment to take in and remember the simple pleasures in my life. When things get tough, I can stop, breathe in, and draw upon those good feelings stored from enjoying the moment.
Good post, Daryl. Reminds one to appreciate the simple things in life in the midst of trying to achieve productivity skills. Makes the long-term goals more bearable.
Yeah, I just spoke with Professor Csíkszentmihályi to ask him about the waiting period before entering flow and he told me that most time isn’t spent in flow, but people learn to enjoy the activities that lead into flow.
#6 Is also one of my favorites. We live very close to a state road where cars will be driving by at 45 – 50 miles an hour. Others have commented about the road noise (but really we are in a rural area so it isn’t as bad as it sounds) but it doesn’t bother me at all.
In the winter time I can tell when the roads are getting bad in the middle of the night because I can no longer hear the cars drive by…the absence of the sound of the cars passing is what will wake me up.
I love listening to the rain too, but also the swish sound that the cars then make because the roads are wet.
Nice post. It was nice to be reminded to stay in the present moment and appreciate it.
I especially love how you don’t think of the cars driving by at night as a distraction from your meditation. Very good!
I really respond to #7. I lived in South Australia and as a kid I loved being out amongst the eucalyptus trees when rainfall broke a long hot spell – just smelled amazing as the first drops splashed onto the dry leaves. Later I taught in a primary school and one day after several really hot days the weather turned thundery and began to rain. As I dashed to close the windows we had opened to catch the breeze, one of the boys stood up and asked to wait a while because he just loved the smell of rain on the hot tarmac of the playground outside. So I stopped and as one, the kids all simply closed their eyes and breathed in and we all just joined in loving that moment. Unforgettable.
Wow, that sounds amazing. I feel at peace just imagining it.
Interesting Post. Made me think about what simple things keep me going. I agree with most of yours in addition to sun rising, skating through the park, and spending time with the gf.
Not spending time with your soul mate aka girlfriend? (winks)
I’ll be doing the biathalon with her and we eat at Orris together. 2/7 isn’t bad
um…2/7= 29%. Hope she thinks the world of you, cause that’s kind of sad, actually, pitiful maybe. Hope she doesn’t read this thing. But then you could argue I guess, she isn’t a simple thing.
She is very important to me, but I think it would be sad if she was the only thing I enjoyed about my life.
What are your thoughts on the matter? Do you think a person should strive to only enjoy being with the person (s)he loves or can/should (s)he be able to appreciate other things?
Oh, and I’ve been trying to let her know more how much she means to me lately. Thanks for the advice earlier.
Sorry if I offended you–did not mean to do that, especially since I love your posts. (I really am involved with GTD/productivity theories, just a bit too curious about the people behind these actions too. Psychology major speaking here.) I’m sure she is very important to you and I agree that it would be sad if she was the only thing you enjoyed in life.
Call me a hopeless romantic with a twist of “tomboyish-ness”, but I think every girl wants to feel cherished and loved. A person should strive to enjoy being with the person (s)he loves, but also appreciate other things. However, are you making that known? Are you taking the time to demonstrate your love for her while maintaining who you are to profit the relationship? Or does your aim to strive for productivity and other enjoyments in life seem to overbear your “acts of love”? Are you showing her your love in a manner that she can receive it and acknowledge it?
Something I learned through my past relationships, is that the guy often shows their affection in ways that do show their love for their significant other, but just not in ways that the other feels loved. Confused? My boyfriend loves it when I play video games with him and go out and just have a beer. However, if he did the same to me, I think I would feel like a frat buddy. For me, I would prefer to cuddle up on the couch. See the difference? Not sure if there is a term for this, but its all about the form of action.
So, the question to ask is: are you showing her you love her in a way she can get it? Are you doing things between the two of you that only she would know that makes her the cherished and loved one? It’s not necessarily a compromise of who you are and what you enjoy in life, but making sure she and the rest of the world know she is the one and only. Ultimately, its the communication and trust between you two. There will always be a bit of compromise sometimes, but I would suggest that you figure out the balance between being true to yourself and your enjoyments in life and making sure she’s a priority. Hopefully this helps.
Thanks for sharing. What you are describing kind of sounds like a person’s “love language”. My girlfriend (and some others) have told me about this. I try to do that, but I can definitely improve.
Nice post. Savor the moment. I like that concept. Time is so little time, so many things to do. So make sure every minute counts to something. Be it producing, or just chilling and enjoying life