Delicious Anticipation

I'm not talking about feverish excitement here, it's like the feeling you had as a kid during the lead-up to Christmas rather than the overwhelming state that Christmas Eve often brings to children. It's waking up in the morning and knowing something good is on the horizon. It's tingly, it's heart-warming, it's delightful.

So how can you get to feel like that when there isn't anything to look forward to?

You create something.

You invent it. You make it up.

Huh?

Photo courtesy of lepiaf.geo under the Creative Commons license.

Photo courtesy of jillallyn, under the Creative Commons Licence.

Not as easy as you think. Many of us bimble around looking for something and most haven't a clue what that is. We go about our lives, vaguely wondering if there is more to it. Puzzling over what our life's purpose is. Thinking that we should have some clear calling towards IT. Whatever IT is.

I can clear up a couple of things here. Your life's purpose isn't about doing anything; it is about being. It is about being the best we can be. You want to climb mountains? It makes you happy and you feel the best you could possibly feel while you are doing it? Perfect. You want to alleviate human suffering? Do it and feel the best you can be while you are doing it. You want to write? Do it and feel as good as it gets.

Want to be a parent? An artist? A mechanic? Do what you do and feel the best you can while you are doing it. In a situation where you don't seem to have a choice about how you spend your days? Be the best you can be in the moment. Washing dishes? Be the best dishwasher you can be.

It's not about what you do, it's about the way you feel while you are doing it.

However, if you are not living your dream; if you haven't even got a dream then now is the time to start creating one. And what a delicious thing to anticipate.

Photo courtesy of aeu04117, under the Creative Commons Licence.

With a little effort and lots of delightful discoveries, you are able to craft a dream which is completely personal to you. Your dream is actually made up of lots and lots of smaller dreams. Maybe you want an example? Okay, say we have a man whose lifetime ambition is to stop working, sail around the Caribbean and paint. He also loves to cook and hopes to learn a lot on his travels. At the present time, though, he is unable to sustain this way of life - he needs to carry on working and he also needs to persuade his wife that his dream lifestyle could be her dream too.

He is not loving his work; he is feeling unfulfilled, frustrated and impatient. His dream is still there but it only serves to illustrate the huge gap between the here-and-now and where he wants to be. Years ago his dream gave him thrill-bumps, now it seems to mock him by remaining out of reach.

He discovers a book, very much like The Attraction Distraction and he decides it's time to turn his life around. No, he isn't going out to buy a yacht, instead he is going to bring his dream closer to his present life. He completes some written and mental exercises to determine all the things he wants to do and he makes a list. He is totally surprised to realise that he could be doing many of those things right now. He doesn't know why this has never occurred to him before.

He begins to rediscover his art... something he put aside for his career. He finds a joy and peace in painting that he has not felt in years. He starts to cook on the weekends; his speciality is Caribbean food. He and his wife redecorate their home in blissful, sunshiny colors. Sometimes they take trips to the coast on weekends so he can indulge himself in gazing at all the gorgeous boats. He begins to have a KNOWING that his dream is becoming closer and is, in fact, unfolding right under his nose. His wife is inspired by his enthusiasm. Soon they are building a joint dream, one where he gets to plan what he wants while she is able to do the same. They are now co-creating in a most powerful way. Life is getting better and better.

Sure it's not all sweetness and light. He still has to work to pay the bills and face the rush-hour traffic but things are changing; work is not as unfulfilling as it once was. More opportunities are opening up and he begins to see the possibility of being able to combine his work with a life of leisure.

His days are becoming filled with appreciation and delicious anticipation awaits him every morning.

Photo courtesy of dotbenjamin under the Creative Commons Licence.

Let's say you have created your dream and small chunks of it are already beginning to appear. Life is taking on more color and you have many things to appreciate. However, you know it can become even better.

Time to ramp up the delicious anticipation!

Every night take 5 minutes to write out a short list of 'appreciations'; things that happened, people who were pleasant or gifts received. Doesn't matter if your appreciations are big or little, write them down and smile as you do so. Let those warm appreciative waves roll over you. Feel good as you are doing this. It's not a clinical list; you should feel real appreciation as you remember the good stuff.

Next another 5 minutes of the good things you'd like to happen the next day. Big stuff, small stuff, whatever. Also add in if you would like pleasant surprises, chance meetings, easy parking, shopping bargains - anything that occurs to you.

Lay down and snuggle into your bed. Make sure it is as comfortable as you can make it. Smile and bask in the security and the delicious anticipation of a restful sleep. Take a few minutes to enjoy this sensation before you let yourself drift off.

Upon waking, don't leap straight out of bed. Relax a moment, stretch and bliss out in those lovely moments before you have to leap into your shower. Think of the lovely things you have lined up for yourself either today or over the weekend. Think of the unknown surprises in store. Feel delicious anticipation.

When you do get up, begin your day with what Abraham-Hicks calls 'a rampage of appreciation'. Appreciate the hot water, the towels, the soap, your toothbrush, your coffee, your breakfast. Say something nice to your partner or your children.... or yourself. Pay compliments. Feel good as you start your day.

Then get on with your day as usual. See how an ordinary day becomes full of magic just because you feel good. See how starting your day with delicious anticipation can enhance the daily routine.

Just know that something good is going to happen!

Don't just do this for a few days.... keep it going. Look for ways to live your dream right now. Look for things to appreciate all the time. Just see how life becomes lighter and brighter. Notice that you are living life to the fullest. Notice that you are saying 'Yes!' more often than you are saying 'No.' There are things to look forward to in your ever-unfolding future and there are things to enjoy right now... even if it is just a latte and a cookie or a crisp green apple or a warm smile from a colleague. Appreciation is the key to happiness and delicious anticipation is the icing on the cake of life (just to mix up a few metaphors)!

Photo courtesy of a loves dc, under the Creative Commons Licence.