Are You Living Your Life to the Fullest?

We tend to think we will live forever - that there will be time enough for doing the right thing. Tomorrow we will enjoy a beautiful sunset. Sometime soon, we will forgive those who have hurt us. "The beautiful gifts of mother nature are not going anywhere," you say?. I thought so too until a horrendous, devastating fire spread through our mountain killing everything in its path.

I have learned a hard lesson about the limit of time we really have here. I thought my son would always be here and never in my wildest dreams could a disease called 'cancer' take him from me. We never know when we say goodbye to a loved one if we will see them again. But Todd lived his life to the fullest, cherishing his children and experiencing all of nature.

The world is beautiful and wonderful and life can be easy when you make love your way of life.

Try to see everything through the eyes of love.

Live everyday

as though it were your last

Yesterday is gone

so don’t live in the past

Forgive all those who hurt you

they know not what they do

You’ll be a better person

If you learn to love them too

Take time to smell the flowers

Take time to enjoy the view

There’s beauty all around you

The sky is always new

We have the power to change our thoughts

We can be happy or sad

It’s only our perception

that makes things good or bad

Be thankful for the little things

a smile, a song, a touch

Don’t let a kind word go unsaid

a smile doesn’t take much

Loving one another

is the best thing we can do

Its medicine to feed the soul

We feel it through and through

Each moment is a gift to us

Use it wisely now, my friend

Don’t waste it, don’t abuse it

It will never come again

Learning to live in the moment isn't an easy thing to do. Our minds continually get over-loaded with stress, thinking about past events and cluttered dialogue. Here are a few tips to help you on your path to living in the moment:

• Clear the clutter. The first we need to do is to clear our minds. Most mind clutter comes from living in the past. Let go of it. Let go of the mistakes you’ve made, opportunities you’ve missed, people you've hurt, and anything else you hold on to.
• Too much information. Believe it or not storing too much information in your mind can clog it up the same way too much garbage in the kitchen drain can cause clogging. So limit watching television, especially the news, social media, cell phones, magazines, etc. By doing this mind cleaning, you will create space in your brain.
• Meditate. When we meditate we learn to focus our mind on the present moment. There was a time when I resisted meditation. I didn't have time. I had too much to do and endless things to worry about. Ironic isn't it? Here I am, a vocal coach specializing in breathing, and focusing on our breath only causes all other thoughts to disappear.
• Play. How does playing help to live in the moment? The endorphins (feel-good chemicals) that are released in the brain clean-sweep the clutter allowing us to focus on the moment.

Start these tips a little at a time, just a few minutes each day, then gradually increase one or two. Eventually this will become automatic giving you the power to focus and live in the moment.

We all experience happiness at some point or another. Happiness even seems simple but when you think about it, happiness can be quite complicated. Even our daily habits have an effect on our mood. Do you get enough sleep? What about exercise? Would you rate yourself as mostly positive or do you lean toward the negative?

Emotions are a different experience for everyone, and each individual's baseline (or general level of happiness) is determined by genes and personality traits. As it turns out, a lot goes into being a happy camper.

If you're looking for ways to be happier, try the following:

• Smile, even when you don't feel like it. Your mood will change for the better.
• Read inspiring articles.
• Sing. It's a proven fact that your feel-good endorphins kick in when you sing.
• Listen to music you enjoy. This has numerous health benefits including lowering cortisol, the stress hormone.
• Learn something new. Everyday is an opportunity to renew and empower yourself. In-depth courses are available on endless topics. Get ready...get set...get learning!
• Ask yourself, what did you want to do as a kid? And just try it. Take a leap and try something new.
• Tap into personal talents, skills, capacities and interests.

These are just a few ways to enhance your life and live it to the fullest.

Do you do the things you love? If your answer is no then I'm asking why not? Every moment that we live, every breath we take is a gift - a treasure. Make time for the things you love to do. You are the top priority. Honor yourself by putting your wants and needs first.

No, this is not being selfish. In fact it's completely unselfish. It's really quite simple. When you take care of yourself first, you are better able to take care of others. You can't tend to sick folks when you, yourself, are sick. And when you are happy and fulfilled you are able to bring happiness and fulfillment to others.

Thank you for being here. I appreciate your time and support. I'd love to hear from you and the comment section is a place to share your thoughts.

Audrey Hunt