Weekly Mantra - Get a life

This week's mantra comes from author Anna Quindlen and her book, A Short Guide to a Happy Life. I found this quote on one of my favourite sites, Brain Pickings, and it has inspired me to pick up a copy of my own.

I won't go into too much detail because Quindlen summarizes her thoughts so well. It's a long one this week. Enjoy!

"So I suppose the best piece of advice I could give anyone is pretty simple: get a life. A real life, not a manic pursuit of the next promotion, the bigger paycheck, the larger house. Do you think you’d care so very much about those things if you developed an aneurysm one afternoon, or found a lump in your breast while in the shower?

Get a life in which you notice the smell of salt water pushing itself on a breeze over the dunes, a life in which you stop and watch how a red-tailed hawk circles over a pond and a stand of pines. Get a life in which you pay attention to the baby as she scowls with concentration when she tries to pick up a Cheerio with her thumb and first finger.

Turn off your cell phone. Turn off your regular phone, for that matter. Keep still. Be present.

Get a life in which you are not alone. Find people you love, and who love you. And remember that love is not leisure, it is work." 
- Anna Quindlen via Brain Pickings