Paradise Found...Again

Yes, yes, I know.

I'm not very good at this blogging thing.

I suppose my writing isn't the worst in cyberspace, but if I very rarely write ANYTHING, well, that's just not very entertaining, is it.

Truth be told, I haven't written anything in so long because there simply hasn't been anything to write ABOUT. As it turns out, life in Paradise is remarkably similar to life everywhere else. I work at my full-time job, I come home to walk and play with the pooch, I eat dinner, maybe clean a little, do a load of laundry, or knit for a while, and then fall asleep.



On the couch.



Yup, it's a rockin' life I lead.



On weekends, I take the dog for a long walk or two, cook some food for the week, clean a bit, read, knit, watch movies, maybe decorate a cake...

If The Good.Sport is in charge of the plans, we'll go out for a snorkel or a hike or to see something historic. But the truth is, when The Lady is left to her own devices, she is very busy perfecting the art of relaxing.



Right about now you're probably saying something like, "That girl is RIDICULOUS. She lives in PARADISE and she doesn't take advantage of it. At. All."



I know.



I KNOW.



I'm one of those people who HAS to live near an ocean or my insides start to get sad. I need to be able to get to the smell of salty sea air, the sound of waves lapping against the shore, the feel of sand between my toes, and all the healing properties of ocean water.

So here I am. On an ISLAND in the middle of the ocean. And up until today, the last time I stood at the intersection between land and sea was a whole month ago.

*shakes head*



This will not do.



The time will come when I'll have to move away from paradise. When that day comes, I don't want to have to think to myself, "Gosh, I should have gone to the beach more" or "I shoulda spent more time in the cloudy mountains, watching them make their own weather" or "How could I never have seen _______?!?" When I move back, I'll run into someone who has been here. They'll ask if I did certain activities. I don't want the answer to be, "Oh, no...you know, I never got around to that!"


So my new goal, blogiverse, and you heard it here first - to do one thing each week that I won't be able to do when I no longer live here. Sure, I'm busy. Work is busy! I'm tired! I love my couch! I don't feel like moving! Well, you know what they say about excuses...

The reality of it is, I don't care how busy and important you are. There is always time - even if it's just 10 minutes a week - to do something you truly enjoy. To take advantage of a situation life has handed you.

This week's homework took me to the beach. I purposely chose one that allows pooches so I could bring mine with me. We walked along the beach, she let all the little kids pet her (in between jumping out of the way of the big scary 4" waves!), we found a nice spot in the shade and laid down for me to read and for her to watch the world go by.


It was like a little slice of heaven.


And no, I'm not just bragging about being able to go to the beach whenever I want. I am so blessed and grateful to have the chance to live in the kind of place where people come from all over the world to do things like lay at the beach without a care in the world. But to completely ignore the opportunities available to me here is a really poor, ungrateful way to approach my time here.

So my solemn vow, dear readers, is to make the most of my time here. I'm going to stop and smell the plumeria.

And hell, if this attitude isn't a good metaphor for how we should approach life...

What are you going to do to help yourself take the time to enjoy the unique opportunities you have available to you?