The gift of time

I’ve had two recent instances of people sharing or giving me the gift of time.

Yesterday a group of artist friends (Tami at Choose Joy Studio and PJ from PJsArtFun) met virtually and we followed the prompts facilitated by Eleni for a blissful hour. Sometimes we talked, shared or just quietly worked with the sounds of rustling paper as our companion. When we were finished, I found myself lingering in the studio. To-do lists forgotten, the daily appointments and arguments gently parked to the side while I sat with my art and doodled, painted, wrote and reflected. I realized with a start that I hadn’t had that much time to myself, without a required outcome, in a very long time.

The second gift was another morning this week when my carpool partner drove our kids to school. Driving in rush hour traffic for an hour and a half round trip to get my teen to a great high school is worthwhile, but it can get old – Every. Day. That morning I had the luxury of waking up knowing that I had an extra hour and a half to myself. Bliss! I chose to put my list of have-to’s on hold and let myself play. This time my play was different. I geeked out and spent time learning more about Gutenburg, Brother label makers and a few other tech tools. Did I mention that I love experimenting and learning about tech? Give me a new tech toy or a new app to experiment with and I’m happy for days.

This week I was given the gift of time twice and chose to “play” in two different ways. As we rush headlong into the holidays, I send each of you a wish for the gift of time. I hope you find a few unexpected moments of time to do something you love.