Slow Down

Hi everyone!

It's been awhile, I know. It just seems as though some days I turn around and realize the DAY has turned into NIGHT! What ever happened to "spare time"? or when things "slow down"? I remember when my husband would ask if we had any plans for the day. Now he asks if he's free next Tuesday! I use to be proud to be organized and a "list maker" keeping track of everyone and everything. Now I have so many lists I've forgotten where I left off not to mention where I was in the house when I put the last list down! I use to think the only way to get refreshed was to pack up and leave, once a year, on a well deserved vacation. Only to find that within 3 days of my return, it felt as though I had never left! Then, I discovered a secret weapon. Okeechobee! (You might be wondering at this point when I took my last vacation and whether I'm in desperate need of one now, or just light headed from not having dinner and its already 8:30 p.m.? No, I'm okay. Read on.) What I found in Okeechobee is the secret to calm and refreshed. Try it. It's amazing how quickly you will feel relaxed and calm when you simply walk outside and head to the water. That's right. The water. It could be the canal. Maybe it's the lake. Or maybe it's the Kissimmee River. It really doesn't matter. Just let the air hit your face. Look up into the sky and watch the birds as they gracefully fly by. And if you listen quietly, every now and then you can hear a fish jump in order to catch his next meal. If you're not by the canals or the lake, walk outside anyway. I challenge you. Don't talk. Don't do anything. Just be. And then notice the effect of Okeechobee.

You won't hear the cars or taxi horns blowing as one would in New York City. You won't find any smog unless you leave and travel to L.A. You can head to the beach and find some water, but then you'd have to share it with the other half of Florida. Really, when you stop and think about it, every other town pales in comparison. (By the way, did you ever notice that no matter where you are on the lake or canals, there only ever appears to be a handful of people? And they're all waving at you!)

Then the icing on the cake. Yes, I know. Eating cake, especially if it's my favorite chocolate cake, COULD be stressful. But only if you think about the calories. (Don't think about the calories.) Instead, did you ever stop to think about how convenient the grocery store is for buying all of the ingredients that go into the chocolate cake? Heck, EVERYTHING is convenient. It takes me less than 5 minutes to get to the grocery store, the doctors office, the restaurants, my dentist, the banks, etc. Where we use to live, it use to take us 20 minutes just to get out to the front gate...and another 10 minutes if we were stuck behind someone on a golf cart! (Anyone interested in buying a home? Sell it real cheap!)

My neighbors in Okeechobee all wave as we pass on foot or by car, and when we're out on the pontoon boat EVERYONE waves! (There must be a law.) Before our last home we lived in a place called Celebration. Ever hear of it? Disney built this community in 1994, and it has received many awards for architectural design. All the homes have porches and designed to bring neighbors closer together, giving that small town feel.

What a crock! My first clue should have been Disney built it. The second clue should have been no one was using their porches so how can they be neighborly? (We moved after 14 months.)

So, there you have it. Okeechobee. The best kept secret for peace and quiet in sunny Florida. For anyone who feels overwhelmed (and that's probably most of us these days) remember where we live! And take a walk; watch the birds; get out to the lake; wave to a neighbor. We live in one of the most beautiful towns in Florida and sometimes it's easy to let the "other stuff" get in the way. I know I do. Maybe I should be writing this down on my list as a reminder?

Well, until next time. Thanks, Okeechobee, for giving me peace and calm!

Health and happiness,

Okee Kim