™

Heartwings Love Notes 891 - Dealing with anticipation

Heartwings says, "Thinking about something can make it seem more daunting."

The appointment for my hip surgery was made more than three months ago. Now its time has come. While I feel positive about the outcome of the experience, I also feel a tiny bit apprehensive. Everything I have heard about the surgery from those who have had it done has been good. I even ran into someone who had the procedure done by the same doctor I have and she said hers had gone wonderfully and she was very pleased.

However my mind has been twirling around the upcoming surgery for all the months I have been waiting. Thinking about it has been something I have tried to avoid with little success. My thoughts have revolved endlessly about what I will be unable to do, for how long, as well as what I will need to have prepared and so forth and so on. Now as one who tries hard to be in the present moment as much of the time as possible, this has been a real teaching situation. Present moment mindfulness is not something to be practiced only during meditation. It is a frame of mind to be kept in place all through the day.

As a child I used to enjoy anticipation. I would think about going to the circus, something that happened once a year with great joy. I often looked forward to going to the library to get a pile of new books to read. An avid reader, I often devoured a book a day whenever I could manage to get the time to do so. School vacations were a great source of anticipation. Before they arrived they always seemed to stretch out invitingly and then even when they were over, I could still look forward to the next one.

There was one form of anticipation that was unpleasant. That was when I had done something I shouldn't and my mother would say, "Wait 'til your father gets home!" Although my father was a kind man, I knew whatever punishment was coming would be more severe if he administered it. My anticipation of the surgery is not with dread, however, but with joy. I look forward to more mobility, less pain and a better sleep at night. Meanwhile I am trying hard to stay as focused as possible on the present moment.

May you find it easy to maintain mindfulness as you practice.

PS Dear readers, Thank you for your prayers and for your well wishing for my upcoming surgery. I'll keep you posted.
 

I love to hear from readers and would be honored if you would comment and let me know any suggestions or thoughts. If a friend sent you this, you can sign up at my web site, www.heartwingslovenotes.com, where more love notes can be found in the archives.

Blessings and Best Regards,
Tasha Halpert
 

← Back to Heartwings (Index Page)

   - Click here to print this page

Prev|Next