It dawned on me as I was writing yesterday’s Monday Mash-Up post how not only is 2013 flying by, but I’m letting it PASS me by. And that terrified me. I get frustrated when I hear things like “I just can’t wait for it to be spring” in January because it feels like someone’s wishing away months of their lives at a time, but allowing time to rush right past you without taking a moment to pause and enjoy is just as bad.

When I was still working in the corporate world, I’d often hear people say things like “Time passes too quickly here- you sit down at your desk on Monday morning, get to work, and when you pause to look up at the clock, it’s Friday afternoon.” While I definitely didn’t share that sentiment during my time behind a desk, I completely understand it now. And as much as I live for weekends, I have to start enJOYING the days during the week a bit more, rather than just rushing right through everything.

In case you’re wondering where all of this heavy talk is coming from, I know I’m not the only one who cried during The Office series finale when Andy said “I wish there was a way to know you’re IN the ‘good old days’ before you’ve actually left them.” And that’s what I’m realizing- these ARE the good old days, and I feel like I’m letting them pass us by without slowing down to savor the moment. I don’t want to get 5, 10, 15 years down the road and look back on days like this and wonder why Matt and I didn’t recognize them for what they are.

I’ve always had an irrational fear of getting old, and I think this is where it stems from; the fear of reaching the age of 80 and realizing I never appreciated the moment for what it was. When I was 15, I wished I was 17. When I was 19, I wished I was 23. I know when I’m 40, I’ll wish I was 30 again, and on and on. I’m 25 right now and I’m so happy, right where I am. And yet I still find myself wishing away weeks of my life at a time. In April, it was something like “I wish it was June so we could be in England already.” And now that it’s June, I find myself internally saying “I wish it was September so the weather would cool off.” What?! That’s three months from now!

What if, and track with me here, I woke up on Tuesday, June 4th, and told myself that I was happy that today is today, and not any other day, and that today I’m going to make the most out of everything I can, just for this 24-hour period? And tomorrow? I’ll do the same thing. Take time to stop and smell the roses. Or peonies, or lilies, or wildflowers. Take a moment to pause and ENJOY where God has me right at this very minute, instead of rushing onto whatever’s next. One day we’ll hopefully have a family, and as joyful as that will be, I know we’re going to miss the freedom of having a date night whenever we want, of staying up late to watch a Nationals game. There will always be photos to edit, emails to answer and albums to design, but Matt and I won’t always have this time with just the two of us, and I want to enjoy this precious time NOW instead of mourning the loss of it later.

Happy Tuesday, friends. (Photo by my sweet friend Rebekah!) (And in case anyone was wondering, no, this isn’t a precursor to a pregnancy announcement 🙂 )