Carefree highway? One lane at least?

Today I am grateful for coffee mugs from friends and special trips. Just using them brings me reminders of appreciation. I am also grateful for running water, a luxury for so many.

My play list as I drove home from work yesterday included one good song after another. ELO's "Telephone Line." Pat Benatar's "Fire and Ice." Golden Earring's "Twilight Zone." Bob Seger's "Against the Wind." Gordon Lightfoot's "Carefree Highway." Not a bad stretch of random songs.

As I listened, I absorbed the energy of the music, music from my era. Music that I appreciate.  "Carefree Highway" struck me. What if there really was a carefree highway?  My road doesn't feel too carefree on most days, both the literal road I commute on and the figurative road of life.

There is much of concern going on in the world, and with people I care about. My brain is often too full of worries, far from carefree.

Maybe that carefree highway doesn't exist, but perhaps I can keep a carefree lane open. Available for me to pull over and slow down. That lane transports mindful gratitude, faith in a power beyond myself, stillness, peace of mind, pauses, deep breaths, and an open mind, heart, and soul.

As I travel through my day, even a few minutes here and there in the carefree lane helps my day and my energy level. Mindfulness has been described as kind attention in the present moment. With kind attention, it becomes more obvious when I need to merge right and travel in that carefree lane for a time.

What will I see today as I travel life's highway, as I slow down in the carefree lane?



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