Living Life to the Fullest

I managed to snag a new book on the Kennedy family, this one is “Jackie, Ethel, Joan, The Women of Camelot” and of course I dive right into it despite having 2 other books on the go.  I read that Jackie lived every day to the fullest and I pause.  Really?  What does that mean?  Never a dull moment in 66 years of life?  Is that humanly possible?

       I consider my own life which is rather mundane although I often infuse drama into it by simply laughing at the freaks and foibles of the freaks and fellows I encounter on a regular basis.  The thing you need to know about this writer is that I tend to takes things “literally”.  So if someone says “she lived life to the fullest” I immediately envision a woman of action, climbing tall mountains, running marathons, eluding danger everywhere she turns, laughing, dancing, embracing people left and right.  And so on and so on.  Action, everywhere action.  Then I take a breath, sit back and consider the reality of anyone’s life, full tilt or not.

       I don’t know about Jackie or Ethel, but I know about me.  If I am lying on my bed, light turned on over my head and I am curled up with an excellent book, I am living life to the fullest in that moment.  When I feed my cats, watch them chase each other and then come to me with their big Meows, asking to be let out, I am in the moment and life is good.  When I potter around the kitchen baking a cake or cookies I am savouring every moment with pleasure, anticipating the delight of family or friends.  When I write an especially funny blog I chuckle to myself and imagine the guffaws of my readers.  Perfect.  Laying in a hot tub with lavender bath salts, oh yes, I am definitely in the moment.  Every muscles protesting and joints twinging, as I do my sun salutations, I am definitely There.  Dodging the dangers on the road, cussing, muttering, wondering at the stupidity of others, trust me I am All There.

       Life may seem mundane and frequently without joy but every one of us is living our lives to the fullest when we are consciously engaged in our activity.  I don’t think we should feel diminished because someone may not say about us “she lives life to the fullest”.  Trust us, we are.