Last week I decided to spend my Saturday store hopping, hoping to possibly get some good last minute deals on Halloween decorations. As a new homeowner, I am still in the process of building my holiday décor collection and Halloween is one of those holidays I usually go back and forth on when it comes to decorating. I feel that some Halloween decorations make houses look dumpy with a collection of mismatched “scary” items, that really, just aren’t scary. A simple corn stalk, a couple of pumpkins and maybe even a few mums are enough for me when it comes to Fall décor. But now I am getting off on a tangent… easy there Martha Stewart, bring it back.

So back to my Saturday of shopping for discounted Halloween decorations. Very eager to screw the retail industry out of overcharging me for skeletons made of plastic or foam bats hanging from string, I found myself on a mission. And as soon as I walked into the first store, that mission crashed and burned… hard. There was a corner of what appeared to be the “misfits” of Halloween decorations. I was in complete shock. Here it was October 20th, 11 days before the big celebration, and I found nothing except a cookie decorating kit, complete with spider sprinkles and a paint by numbers pumpkin book. Really?! Is this really happening to me?! Yes, yes it was happening. The retail industry had once again been 2 weeks ahead of me, and was already forcing jolly old St. Nicholas down my throat. Halloween hadn’t even happened yet, and the world was already on to the next holiday. How pathetic. How upsetting.

Now I wasn’t upset over the fact that I lost out on the opportunity to save $$$, no I actually really was…. But rather, I was mad that our society is constantly pushing us on to the next best thing. I do love Halloween and I think done tastefully, it really is a wonderful holiday. There are no expectations with gifts and really no effort to put forth, besides trying to decide what costume to choose. People have fun on Halloween. They get to be someone they are not and actually try to channel their creativity with clever costume ideas or being labeled as the “best house for Halloween candy” in the neighborhood. Halloween is wonderful, but yet people are in such a rush to be onto the next best thing. And no that isn’t Thanksgiving, as I am sure none of you thought, but rather Christmas.

It seems that we have grown up in a culture that does not know how to live in the here and now. To be present, in the present. I mean think about your day. I deal with a great amount of scheduling in my job. I am constantly moving and canceling and rescheduling and connecting with people and appointments. As soon as I get one thing booked, I am on to the next, looking at the next several hours, or even the next couple of days. Even as meetings are happening, scheduling them seems like a distant memory. And then I go home, only to create lists (oh how my boyfriend LOVES my lists) that start outlining the rest of the week, goinng into the weekend, if not into next month. I am OK with admitting that I do not live in the present, but rather I live in the future.

Living in the future is very similar to living in a town that is full of chaos, uncertainty, doubt, and a lot of unknowns. Like who would want to live there?! In this town, things change constantly where the future is unknown, and for some odd reason we are all so obsessed with living in it. So do you know what living in the present is like? Can you do that? I am not saying stop planning for tomorrow , or maybe I am? But what would it take for you to live in each moment, each day, each hour? For me, I know it would be hard to live in the present. Not just because of my job, but because of how culture has shaped us to think. Living in the present is something I have been working on, especially on days that I can. On Saturdays, I challenge myself to try to live in the present. I try to make zero plans and just go wherever the day takes me. I will admit that some Saturdays are better than others. When I live in the moment, I find myself taking the time to go and see people I haven’t seen in a while, or find myself really enjoying a walk with the dogs, without even realizing how far I have gone. I find myself having phone calls or Facetimes that can last for over an hour, with no pressure to hang up or cut conversation short. It is a good feeling and more so a feeling of a better you.

What would it take for you to have just one day of unplanned time for yourself or even for others? What would you do? How would you spend it? I know my current lifestyle involves four legged fur babies that pretty much always live in the moment. I realize that an unplanned/ live in the moment kind of challenge, just isn’t something that is feasible for everyone. But I do want to challenge you to be aware of the here and now. Enjoy what is around you, what you have, and what is to come. Not only do I ask you to live in the moment, but to live for yourself xo