Christal Wagner Photography
BEING.
Two finches approach the bird feeder tentatively while I watch from my window and sink full of dirty dishes. I can get these done quick. I watch them flutter about dancing from perch to perch as they take turns nipping at the feeder and before I know it, the sink is empty. A cat curls around my leg and leaves me with a little love bite . Somebody is hungry. She nips at me a second time to remind me.
What should I do today? A book in hand I could easily just enjoy my little backyard sanctuary. It is a humid summer day. The shade of my backyard tree offers respite from the sun so I head out with my coffee and daydream about where the day could take me. Tune into the daydreams, tune out the phone.
A few potted plants on one side and a small flower bed with little treasures scattered throughout on the other, this is my little secret garden. A little bit of whimsy and a little bit half assed. Some mornings I just sit here, at my teeny tiny table as the enormous maple tree with its spectacular branches sway peacefully overhead. That tree needs a trim. Enjoying a calm moment before a day ahead demands my attention. I love this spot. Today, I am free. Free to do as I please. Stay free, stay out of the phone.
Our sweet small backyard is bustling with life. While the pesky squirrels dig into the dirt looking for nuts and the chipmunks snack on the plants it is lovely to have this little patch of green space that is ours. Geraniums, peonies, ferns. It’s a lovely little space that I’ve really made my own. I’ve even got some little trinkets and treasures scattered throughout. My favorite are the happy frogs emerging from the flower beds. I take it in, I don’t take out the phone.
A tiny gnome is perched in the old wheel barrow overflowing with flowers that the squirrels love to munch upon while a small bee tries to get a taste of my breakfast. I wiggle my toes through the grass and a roll poly sneaks away from my foot and back into the soil. A small beetle begins its journey around the empty chair across from me. Wind blows through the trees as maple dingles fall to my feet. Who know what those are called anyway? Birds chirp in constant song and the cars hum as they fly by too fast down the street out front. Listen to the song composed in the moment, ignore the call of the phone.
I could sit here and just take it in. For awhile, I do. There’s nothing wrong with taking some time for yourself that is filled with literally nothing. Nothing but sitting and enjoying your surroundings. Be with the moment, be wary of the phone.
It’s a morning meditation of sorts. Can I just sit with myself? I fight the urge I will not waste this day, this moment, I will not fall under the spell of the phone. I decide. I remind. I breathe. I return myself back to the moment.