Taste Life Blog

Every day is a gift full of little stuff. Unfortunately most of the time we are moving at such a frantic pace to get things done, read another email or help people who are asking for it that we feel we are always behind  and are too busy to notice the little stuff.  “I will get outside tomorrow after I get this stuff done.”  What if you enjoyed every single summer day like you did when you were a kid?

Remember your carefree fun filled summer days and even more savory nights where you stayed out late and watching the dragon flies and begging your mom to stay outside “another minute.” You are in luck. You can enjoy this again because the way to predict your future is to create it. Every year I create the Best Summer of Your Life Club and I am inviting you to join. Club membership involves five rules.

First, make the decision that this will be the best summer of your life. Your to do list will never be done and your house will never be perfect. You own the power to decide; the choice is yours.

Second, create your summer wish list of activities, places you wish to visit and people you want to hang out with. An easy way to start is with the end in mind. Remember when you were a kid and the first week of school you had to write a report on how you spent your summer vacation. Pretend it is Labor Day and someone is asking you how you spent your summer vacation. What would you want to include? What have you done every single summer for the “sake of tradition” and do not want to include?

Third, narrow your list down to 14 activities as there are 14 weeks between Memorial Day and Labor Day. It does not have to be big stuff. Gary and I go to Adele’s every other Sunday night to enjoy a raspberry truffle ice cream cone. On my list this summer is to kayak on Lotus Lake with my friend Brenda. I also have the intention of going to the library and checking out a book and reading it outside at a coffee shop.

Fourth, print your list and post it on your fridge. Without a visual reminder we tend to forget our best intentions.

Fifth, share your list with your spouse, partner or friend. Tell them you are intentionally living the best summer of your life.

Summer is the time to enjoy the little things. Every year as I get older I realize the little things in life were really the big things. Who and what is important in YOUR life today? How do you honor that today?  How lucky you are a grown up and no one has to tell you to come in when the street lights come on. You are in charge of your free time. You can predict your best summer of your life by creating it!