Happiness on the Oregon Coast
My partner Doug and I loaded up the Subaru and pointed the car west. We had fifteen days ahead of us, and a loose plan to spend time in the redwoods, on the Oregon coast, and in the Cascade mountains.
The only firm plans we had were to spend the last two days before the long drive home resting our trail-weary muscles in hot springs and taking time for yoga, meditation, and awesome vegetarian meals while camping at Breitenbush Hot Springs retreat center.
My intention for our trip? Be completely present. That’s really it. I knew that if I could be present, I wouldn’t miss out on the trip I was actually on, if that makes sense. I could get so much more out of each day, make the days seem much longer, and create deeper experiences and memories. I could be fully present to Doug, and to myself.
This turned out to be the case. Both of us practiced being mindfully present, and we found that when we were in the mountains, our time in the redwoods seemed like a long time ago, even though only a week had passed. Each day unraveled slowly, new delights and sensations unfolding luxuriously.How often in our regular routines of home, work, home, work do we find that another week has zipped by? The time between Monday morning and the weekend zooms, months flutter past like the calendar pages in old-time movies when they want to show time passing. Birthdays arrive ever more quickly, the older we get.
The antidote to all this zippiness is presence. Read more