Last Friday night Sam heaved a sigh and shut down his computer. He walked into the kitchen where his wife, Anya, was going crazy preparing massive amounts of food for dinner and the coming week. Sam put his arms around her and gave her a big hug.
Anya looked up and said, “What’s this all about?”
Sam said, “I just logged off and I’m not logging back in for the next two weeks.”
Anya looked bug-eyed. “You’re kidding! Not even to check email?”
Sam said, “Nope! I’ve worked all year for this. For the next 2 weeks I’m 100% focused on you and the family.”
Anya, skeptical look on her face, “You’ve never done that before.”
Sam smiled and said, “And it’s about time!”
Anya smiled, walked over and gave Sam a big hug. They held on for a while, looked up at each other and smiled.
Sam walked into his daughter Heather’s room. “Hi, honey. Whatchya doing?”
Heather: “Why? Is something wrong?”
Sam: “Nothing’s wrong. Whatever you’re doing, I want to do it with you.”
Heather: “Why?”
Sam: “I miss you.”
Heather, shocked: “Daddy!”
Sam walked over, sat down next to her and said, “So, what are we doing?”
Several days later, I got a text from Sam:
“I have just had the best 3 days of my life. I’m being 100% present with the people I love the most in the world.”
“I never realized I was not fully present in my own life, I was always somewhere else in my mind. I never realized I wasn’t letting myself fully enjoy the people I was with.
“We’re having conversations and talking about things we’ve never talked about before. I’m learning things about my wife and daughter I never knew. Something’s really changed in me, and as a result, in them.
“It’s not only a new year, it’s a new life. In a week and a half I’ll be logging in to work again, but as a new man.”
Some gifts we give to enrich the lives of those we love. Presence is a gift we give ourselves that transforms our entire world and everyone in it.
Wishing you a very happy holiday with the people you love most!
Be the cause!