Enjoy Where You're At

I love the TV show Scrubs. Abso-freaking-lutely love it! The characters are all incredible (Dr. Cox is by far my favorite- I only wish I could rant like he does!), the one-liners are hysterical, the storylines are fairly true to life, but what I love most of all about the show is the moral, and how it ties everyone together. At the end of every episode, JD comes to some big realization that not only defines his situation, but everyone else's situation too. And somehow, I find JD's realizations running parallel with events in my own life, too.

"I usually don't like thinking about the future. I mean, let's face it, you can't predict what's gonna happen. Sometimes the thing you didn't expect is what you really wanted after all. Maybe the best thing to do is stop trying to figure out where you're going and just enjoy where you're at."

This particular ending struck me quite hard, as it pretty much sums up my entire 2010 thus far. I get into the habit of spending so much time trying to figure out what's going to happen or what I should do if this happens or that happens, or just generally obsessing and stressing over stupid things, that I forget to just enjoy the now. I think I've gotten better about trying to live in the moment and not freak out so much about what did happen or might happen. But I also know that I still have a lot of work left to do. And maybe I'm just genetically wired to worry. (I got it from my great-grandmother, and my grandmother, and my mother! There's absolutely no question where that gene came from!) But I can still work to change what I don't like, even if I know it won't be an easy fix. You can always improve yourself. As Nithya Shanti says, "Everything is perfect... and joyfully improving."

I think it's human nature to worry or think too much about what we can't control. The future is a scary thing. No matter what we do or how much we plan or how in control we think we are, that illusion can all be thrown out the window in an instant. The best we can do in any situation, really, is simply enjoy it, act honorably at all times, and hope for the best. Beyond this, worrying does no good. It only heightens the stress factor. Trust me, I know this from many years of personal experience of worrying. Does no good at all. Doesn't solve anything, doesn't make things happen faster or slower, doesn't make things easier, doesn't make answers appear. Letting go is a big thing for me. As in, I need to learn how to do it. Letting go of the worry and fear is huge. But I know I need to. Living in and enjoying the present moment is the best any of us can do at any given time.

"Maybe the best thing to do is stop trying to figure out where you're going and just enjoy where you're at." Thanks for the AHA, JD!