Anticipation



Yesterday I was talking with a client about anticipation.  It's one of my favorite emotions to feel!  I remember being a kid, looking forward to Christmas morning.  Or being an adult, looking forward to a fun vacation!  I think at least half of the fun comes before the actual event- all the planning and dreaming and imagining.  It's so exciting!

My client was worried that by enjoying the anticipation too much, she wasn't being fully present in the joy of right now.  And she has a valid point.  It's possible to get tricked into thinking "I will be so much happier when... I have more money.  Or I'm sleeping through the night.  Or once my husband learns to communicate better."  That list can be endless, and we could spend our entire lives waiting for a happiness that was actually available to us all along.

But anticipation isn't postponing happiness, it's like reaching into the future and stretching the happiness all the way back to today.  It's the opposite of waiting to be happy until something happens.  It's choosing to be happy, starting the moment you think about that future event!

When I am feeling happy, looking forward to something good in my life, I also feel happier about the things going on right now.  I don't sweat the small stuff as much.  I am quicker to laugh.  I do a better job of creating a fun atmosphere for my children.

I remember my sister saying that when she was a missionary in Guatemala, sometimes the days would get long and monotonous. She was hot and wet and tired every day.  To keep her spirits up, she would pick one thing each day to anticipate.  Wether it was a favorite popsicle, a favorite person to visit or a letter to read, she would focus on that, then use the happiness it created to make her whole day better.

I love that happiness is available to us any time we want it.  We just need to learn and practice the skill of choosing it.


Christi


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