{Smathers Beach at Key West}
Staring at my “to-do” list makes me angry. Only two out of twelve items have been checked off over the course of two weeks. Even as I sit at my usual coffee shop, I’d rather listen to music and daydream of being a karaoke superstar (oddly, I had similar daydreams as a child) or taking a tropical beach vacation instead of doing work. Perhaps I’m tired…or miss my friends and family…or am so overwhelmed by work that I’m procrastinating until the very last minute before I get in trouble (something I used to do in grade school)…or a combination of everything plus life, in general.
Yesterday morning, I released some aggression at kickboxing class, and on my way out, I couldn’t help but smile. At the nearby park, a group of adorable kids were seated around a campfire, laughing and telling jokes. And at that moment, I realized — Sometimes life gets so stressful that we can’t help but revert to our childhood ways of coping, that is, until reality sets in. I’m a physician (not a karaoke dynamo) and I can no longer rely on teachers punishing me for late work submissions.
If only life could be as simple as a campfire during summer break.