The Top Deck

It was mothers day weekend, I just finished closing my laptop as I looked outside my front window.  The sun was shining so bright, it’s like she was calling me to come outside and soak up her rays.  I grabbed the pup and we headed upstairs to the top deck.  No phone, no music, no book, just us and an unobstructed view of the universe.

I closed my eyes and allowed myself to just be.  Be fully present.  Be aware.  Be here, in the now.  As I quieted the voices inside my head and started listening to the sounds swirling around me, I could hear the craw of the crows as they flew across the sky, the motor of a boat as it skipped through the water.  The faint voices of neighbours as they sat on their decks and docks swimming and visiting with family. I could see the island in the distance, the clouds fleet across the sky and the sun glisten on the water. The only thought in my head was wondering what colours will burst through the sky tonight when she sets.  

I could feel the warm breeze embrace me as she blew passed and the sun shining down with sheer intensity on my face, as I drifted between napping and meditation.  It was a much needed, cathartic afternoon.  I could have worked.  I could have cleaned.  I could have done homework.  I could have done 20 other things.  But this, this right here was the one thing I most needed to do. 

Presence brings us clarity and helps us live in a place of love.  When we live in the emotion of love, we live in the space of gratitude and when we’re grateful, we can’t help but feel full and content.  I have many things to be grateful for and right now, more than anything, it’s for this space. Right here.  This top deck.  A place where I can take the time needed to release all the things that no longer serve me, to forgive myself and others, to clear my head of the clutter and to fill my heart, so that I have the energy I need to help others fill theirs.  

We all have a top deck in our lives, whether it’s music for you, running, meditation, or gardening.  That place where your blood pressure drops a few points, slows the heart rate down to a nice resting beat and infuses serenity into your life. The one that when you get there, you feel the tension immediately release from wherever you’re holding it in your body.  You know the place I mean.  We all have one.  Sometimes we just need a little reminder that it’s ok to go there. 

#mentalwellness #mentalhealth #selflove #selfcare