Taking In A Moment

There have been certain moments in my life where I stood there just thinking how crazy it is to be here today. In those moments, I take it all in. I remember how I felt. I remember the weather. I remember what I was wearing.

I don’t think people take enough time to appreciate those moments, where you are just so appreciative to be where you are.

When my boyfriend and I went to Iceland, our first major trip together, we booked a tour to see some amazing landscapes. Unfortunately, it rained all day and we were uncomfortably soaked and completely not dressed for the weather. After many stops on the tour bus, one of which we didn’t even get off of because we were so uncomfortable, our last stop was to hike to see a glacier. We hiked that thing as fast as possible in our itchy wet jeans.

But at the top, I remember breathing in the cold. The air was so fresh and so frozen. And before us was a mass of ice and mountains. I don’t even remember the sights as much as I remember the feeling. Feeling like this is a moment I need to capture.

And while that might be an obvious memory to anyone, seeing something amazing in a different country, I catch myself taking in smaller moments too.

When my boyfriend and I first started dating, we spent a lot of time driving to each other and then sitting in each other’s cars because we didn’t want to go home yet but there was nothing else to do. I remember sitting on his lap at one point and him pulling me to him and pressing his hand to my heart to feel its beat. It was only for a minute in time, but I filed it away in my memories.

It’s the big things – like how the wind whips through your hair at the top of a mountain in Portugal and leaves your cheeks red. And it’s the little things – like when you both start singing to a song ridiculously but miraculously on cue.

Take in those moments. How they feel, how they smell, how they make your heart feel just a little different. They’re the moments that keep you going in the hard times, the moments that make you feel human when life can be so robotic.