Somebody hit pause, please

There are times when I wish life came with a pause button. For those days when life is happening so fast I can barely keep my footing as it rushes past. Yesterday was one of those days.

Maybe a pause button is only a Band-Aid solution, but it sure seems appealing.

For example, when Dan sits me down and asks me to play I could hit pause and the world outside my little bubble would slow to a halt. I could play to my heart's content with Dan, without worrying about getting out to the barn or supper or the million other tasks that need my attention. The cows are on hold – they'll wait. The world is on hold – my year-end bookkeeping deadline can wait. Right now I'm just going to enjoy this time with my son.

I believe the experts call this concept 'living in the moment'. It's the secret to happiness. Well, it's a secret all right; because without a pause button, it's awfully hard to sit for awhile without worrying about what else one should be doing. I guess that's why we take vacations. It's a lot easier for me to just sit when I'm away from the calves that need bedding or the floor that needs sweeping.

Or, take last night, for another example. Glen came in for help after I'd gone in to make supper. A new heifer had calved. Somebody hit pause, please. The casserole I have in the oven magically won't burn. The rest of the world will wait while we coax Dixie into a stall, harvest her colostrum, and feed her little heifer calf. When we do finally crawl into bed after our perfectly-done supper, we won't be an hour behind bedtime and faced with another short night. Oh, imagine the possibilities of life with a pause button.