Yesterday, my second full day in Hawaiian paradise, I found myself worrying about this and that, “this and that” being small things like money, meaning of life and death. The anxiety producing thoughts about things way beyond my control had grabbed onto me like a tenacious dog chewing a bone. Gnaw, gnaw, gnaw. It always takes me a few days to settle into a vacation, even if it is a working one, but this fretting was keeping me from working AND keeping me from relaxing. So there I was, fretting about the fretting.

Knowing that nature always brings me back to center, I took my tortured self out to the beach and with toes in warm sand, sun on my face, I watched the waves move in and out, in and out… Each time a worry came to mind, I sent it to an incoming wave and watched as it was carried out to sea. Slowly, as the stormy thoughts dissipated, and my mind became more calm, I could see that even in the midst of paradise I was creating my own little purgatory. Then I recalled an insight I had last year while in meditation, one that each time I remember makes me smile, soothes my soul and brings me right back into the present moment.

Lesson in Paradise Day 2: I am happy. I just forget that I am happy.