This weekend, I rewatched The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. It’s a movie about a guy who daydreams. A lot. His daydreams bring him into a world where he’s a hero. An adventurer. A passionate artist. Someone who isn’t afraid of anything.
At one point in the movie, the man Walter admires most (a photographer) says this — and it stopped me in my tracks:
“If I like a moment…I don’t like to have the distraction of the camera. I just want to stay in it.”
Rephrased, this could apply to my life. I’d say:
If I like a moment, I don’t like to have the distraction of
- worry…
- or wondering what if…
- or thinking constantly about the future…
- or looking to the next great thing…
- or pretending that I’m okay with a busy schedule…
- or flitting from one thing to the next because I have to.
If I’m honest with myself, I tend to see a beautiful moment, make a mental note about it, and move on — far too quickly. But what if instead, I truly took time to savor it? To set down whatever I’m doing and relish in it? To put away the mental pen and simply enjoy it?
Moments like
- playing with my son on the living room floor, even thought laundry is piled around me
- tasting a new recipe (or new ice cream flavor…)
- rereading a lovely turn of phrase in a book, and allowing the words to wrap around my soul
- nestling against my husband and letting him stroke my hair, without caring what time the clock reads
Because we can’t get these moments back.
A camera or worry or busyness or time or whatever it may be CAN get in the way of the moment itself.
I find myself daydreaming about a full life.
But the cool thing about The Secret Life of Walter Mitty? Walter’s daydreams become less frequent as he really begins to live his life in reality.
So let’s stop dreaming about living a full life — and just live it.