A Moment of Peace

This month, all of The Autism Treatment Center of America staff - Child Facilitators and Teachers - are more busy than ever before. We've taken on some new exciting projects to help even more families - and since we're doing it all at once, wow - it has made each day like a whirlwind of activity. But it has helped me realize the most amazing gift - that even on the busiest of days, it only takes one moment of pause to feel relaxed, energized and ready for more.

Monday was one of those days that was full to the very brim - my cats waking me up at 5:00 because they'd found a previously undiscovered mouse hiding in the kitchen...construction workers arriving at my house at 7:00am...eat, exercise, shower...8 people wanting my first 20 minutes at work...then 7 hours of back to back teaching and meetings and two hours of consultations...And finally arriving home at 7:30 pm to a sink full of dirty dishes and an empty refrigerator - realizing that I forgot to take my car to the mechanic for my scheduled appointment 12 hours before.

It was only as I sat down an old can of chicken soup I found in the cupboard, I realized that I wasn't tired - even after such a full day. All last week, I remember feeling tired every night when I got home - so what had changed?

I realized that it only took two simple intentions to have a FULL day and still feel relaxed...

1) Decide that one moment of pause is enough. That day, I did stop and go outside and sit in the sun for just 2 minutes - and that two minutes was enough to keep me going for the entire day. When I really let my brain stop for just a moment, it was like I had taken a relaxing afternoon nap.

2) Return to the task at hand with gratitude. No matter what is in front of us, or how many things are on the to-do list, if we decide to greet each task with a smile, then even when our day is completely full, nothing feels overwhelming.

Try it - just for a moment - just step outside for a moment, take a deep breath and return to whatever you're doing with a smile. It's amazingly simple, but it works. Have you gone yet? What are you still doing sitting here? Go! Enjoy your moment! And enjoy the rest of your day.