I started to write this post 3 days ago. I wanted to write about being in the present moment and taking in every breath, every sound, every sight, and treasuring it dearly. Right now in this very moment is the gift, not what could happen tomorrow or the days gone past.

I thought I had the words all figured out and then on New Year’s Eve, I saw a tweet that, Mike (Beard Guy) Taylor, from the band, Walk Off The Earth, had just died in his sleep. Never to say good bye to anyone ever again. That’s it. It’s done. Just like that, this human body checked out. Never for anyone to ever see him alive again. No more words, no more laughs, no more touches, no more hugs.

Do you ever have moments that come up in your life and it sideswipes you to pay attention to what just happened? This happens to me a lot.

I didn’t know Mike Taylor personally. I know the band, Walk Off the Earth,…yet, for some reason, with Mike Taylor’s passing, it simply made me bear witness to the fragility of life. It made me reflect on me and how I have been working on focusing to try to stay more mindful in the presence of my life and that I have sucked miserably at it. It made me instantly evaluate how I am living and if I am being true to myself and living honestly and authentically TO ME in the present moment. I have to admit that it is very hard. It is….It is really hard. It is so easy for us to say the word mindfulness and toss it around like we know what we are really talking about and “being in the moment” is where it’s at. But what does it really mean? How do we stop and appreciate the very notion that NOW, right now, in this very moment, is all we have.

Today, I want infuse my precious moments of living within me. To step into living my life. To open up my mind’s eye and absorb every aspect of these moments. I realize how I have missed many times to pause and fully experience everything around me and within me due to living a life on rapid-fire and allowing my life to be hijacked by others. The moments I have missed include sharing gratitude for each incredible blissful moment to simply be alive. From feeling the wind on my face when hiking in the woods and listening to the chirping of the grasshoppers, to mindfully washing out my bathtub that I just used (as it was filled with messy seaweed that happily moisturize my skin), to standing in line at a store with a crying baby in front of me and I can (compassionately) marvel at the intensity of his voice….It all counts. I want to experience the presence of the ones who are our tribe, my sweet friends, our family, the inner circle who have graced me with their presence and love. This is what I want. I want to bear witness to me waking up and to fully understand that our humanness is not guaranteed. We don’t know what is to come tomorrow, let alone 30 seconds from now.

Our lives have been constructed (and also deconstructed) by the outside world to move fast, to keep up with each other and to always be obsessed and addicted to see what each of us are up to. We have forgotten who WE are. We are searching for validation (of who we are) online, and sacrificing are very own self-worth. (Don’t you know that THEIR life must be more important than our very own…Right?! I mean, why else do we spend on average about 2-3 hours a day on Instagram alone…scrolling and scrolling to see what is going on in their world). How tragic we don’t spend that time in our own life. Can you imagine for a moment if we took that ‘Instagram time’ and infused it into our own magic by maybe even, heaven forbid, reading a book! Imagine if we decided to wake up and immerse our minds into nurturing and growing our souls. I can only begin to feel the magnificence of how profound we would all become.

Being distracted by social media is not living mindfully, nor is it really joyful. This is looking to find our souls in someone else’s feed. We spend hours caught up in the scrolling matrix and inbox mayhem desperately looking for a connection. Think about this fact for a second, that we are seeking validation from a HOLLOW space. It is an illusion.

We work very hard at positioning ourselves to be liked and fashion ourselves in a way with optimal filters, cool shoes, good yoga poses, curated angles, that will (we hope) make us get lots of ‘likes’ and the more ‘likes’ we get, the happier we become and this is the dopamine hit we have all been conditioned to go for. It is not real (and it is harmful). This is not ‘living’.

My dear ones, I am dazzled by all of you. You are all incredible humans with beautiful human stories. Happy New Year and be brave. Be mindful with every step you take. Walk on purpose. Speak with kindness. Act with love. LOVE YOUR LIFE! You are capable of great things. Remember that for 2019 you will change, you will heal, you will cry, you will laugh, you will keep things and you will throw things away, you will be challenged, you will feel freedom, and you will grow in ways you never imagined possible. In our extraordinary world, if you look around you will see there is only love and we are all seeking the same thing – deeper connections while we are still alive in our humanness. Trust. Everything loves you.

You have this one life and that is simply all there is.

www.kellychilds.com | Kelly Childs

 

 

 

 

(photo credit Alyssa Wodabek Photography)

 

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Author

Kelly is the co-founder and co-owner (with her daughter Erinn) of the ever popular, Kelly's Bake Shoppe, where 1000's flock to on a weekly basis. She lives in Grey County with her two cats Daisy & Tuna. You can find Kelly developing and creating marketing content and building new business ideas with her daughter Erinn. They have the ever popular podcast: Cupcakes and Consciousness on Apple and Spotify. Tune into their latest shows. Kelly & Erinn are now writing their 2nd cookbook that is due to come out in winter 2023.

21 Comments

  1. Thank you for this brilliant thought. Social Media is not good for our souls. You are so right. xo
    NEW WAYS to live in 2019!

  2. Kelly! Whoa! This is mind-blowing. Thank you. I agree 1200% Happy New Year!
    Love Maria from Calgary

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      KellyChilds Reply

      Thank you Maria! With Love to Calgary! Have a Happy New Year! xo

  3. Thank you. I lost my husband this past August in a terrible accident…..I survived it and he did not. I am having such a hard time with this. I hope one day I can meet you Kelly. You are the sweetest most inspirational SOUL I know.
    With gratitude,
    Sam K

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      KellyChilds Reply

      Sam. My heart. What you have been through. 🙁 May 2019 bring you so much love and connection. I wish you love for all you have been though. Be patient. It will come. xo

      Thank you for reaching out to me. You are so very sweet and kind.

  4. Clare Benson Reply

    And to the parts of ourselves we have lost, and those we have found. 2018 was about personal growth. Here’s to revelling in all our hard work of 2018 and moving to more of the good stuff in 2019.

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      KellyChilds Reply

      Agreed. Happy New Year Clare! 2019 is bringing it all together. xo

  5. Sharon McNamara-Trevisan Reply

    Taking the opportunity to BE. Thank you, Kelly, for sharing a piece of your journey WHILE creating thoughtful community through this energy. When Bradley Cooper was interviewed about A Star is Born, he said ‘Time is the biggest currency.’ I thought that was so powerful. It makes sense…yet, I’m learning, that like your words, we must continue to come back to these realizations and share with each other, in order to truly understand, and also allow ourselves to be within an experience that can allow for BECOMING.
    What an opportunity for entering & growing into a new year! Thanks for your sincerity, passion and spirit of love✨
    Sharon

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      KellyChilds Reply

      Thank you so much Sharon. xo The world is rapidly moving forward and will be transforming this year. We must stay connected to moving forward in love and spirit as much as humanly possible. I’m going to be sharing more through video and interviews. Stay tuned Sharon! Much love!

  6. Amazingly written. Thank you for shining the light on many tender and alarming modern day side affects of chasing our tails in the matrix. Thanks for the wake-up!

  7. Sheena Strauss Reply

    Thank you so much Kelly for allowing us to be in this moment with you while you share such great words of wisdom!!

    It is such a sad loss for Mike’s family and friends, WOTE and the fans. His beautiful musical talents and funny spirit will not be forgotten!!

    You are ao right, it is so easy to get all tangled in the fabric of life. So many attention seeking sinkholes that take us away from our truest selves.
    Taking time to be mindful in the smallest of things allows us to learn to be present for the larger things.
    Cheers to a new year that we can all practice on being more present and more ourselves!!
    Happy 2019!!
    Thank you for being you Kelly!!
    Xoxo

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      KellyChilds Reply

      Thank you Sheena. I agree with everything you have said. Life is so fleeting and fragile. May 2019 bring us closer to what is most important: love.
      xo

      There is going to be a tribute concert January 14 in Downtown Burlington. We will be posting details. xo

  8. Bonita VanPopta Reply

    Thank you for time spent on being an encouragement for others! That is beyond valuable! Our prayers are with you and all those out there who are suffering in whatever way. May Jesus help you walk each day.
    My husband is scheduled for for brain surgery next week. Our time together is so precious! Thanks for your affirmative and loving advice to make the most of each moment in our life and make it count.
    God bless you all in 2019 with his love and grace for eternity!

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      KellyChilds Reply

      My heart is with you Bonita. xo God bless you too. May we all find comfort in this love.

  9. That was very well said. I read that awful news and it stopped in my tracks. Just as they were starting to really see success. I do not normally stop to read all the postings but this one drew me in and I read to the end. You wrote it incredibly well. We all seem to get a lot of wake up calls but unfortunately they do not last long enough. This year I am also going to try harder to be in the moment, be more patient and enjoy every minute a little longer than I would have. Thanks Kelly

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      KellyChilds Reply

      Thank you Colleen! It is so nice to hear from you! Thank you for sharing your heart. xo May 2019 be magnificent for each and every one of us.
      With love,
      Kelly

  10. Cheryl Mahon Reply

    I LOVE YOUR SPIRIT. IF YOU STARTED A GROUP THAT SHARED THOUGHTS, I”D BE THERE IN A MINUTE.
    THANK YOU FOR THE VERY PROFOUND THOUGHTS.
    CHERYL

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      KellyChilds Reply

      This is a lovely and incredible idea Cheryl! Let me consider this and I will let you know. xo

      Life is quickly changing and we need to encourage our connections.

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