Remember when you were a kid and you got into your heavy staring? Your mother would say, “Come back! Where are you, in La La Land?” By now you’ve probably buried or diminished this wonderful place that can help you elicit inner peace and harmony.

As children we daydream often with grace and with great ease. It’s because we are so clearly focused on our intent and where we are at any given moment. If children see a kite, balloon, or bird, they will zero in on it like sonar and track it with complete absorption. As parents, we often scurry after a small child who is following something that they are completely absorbed in because we fear for their safety.

Becoming one with anything gets harder and harder as we get older because our minds become more and more cluttered with outside demands. Today we can be interrupted by some form of technology 24/7. When we finally do try to give ourselves a respite from the constant cacophony of daily life, a nagging inner voice seems to begin plying us with guilty messages. “Why are you resting. You know you don’t have time for this! Get up, don’t just sit there. You have lots to do. Keep going!”

Busyness has become a way of life, and it has even begun to infiltrate the world of children. Many parents spend their hours busing kids to and fro to a variety of organized activities. A lot of kids also spend hours in front of a TV or playing video games in lieu of going outdoors and building forts, flying kites, skipping, running, or watching a bunch of ants creating an ant hill. We are fast becoming a nation that seems constantly focused on making everything, even fun productive. The irony attached to productivity, is that when we marry it to playfulness, we become more productive. All of us would be happier, healthier and less stressed if we could rediscover La La Land. It is available throughout the day and can be a vacation from some of the daily irritations that are part of everyone’s lives. Allow your mind to wander occasionally without reprimanding yourself, savor moments with your children without your inner critic telling you to “hurry up, there’s no time to waste,” and be silly whenever you can. You just might live longer.

Lighten Up Your Week:

Set aside 15 minutes each day this week to daydream. Did the world stop short while you were gone?