The weather is finally attempting to change and not soon enough for me. In New York City, the chill hangs on until the last possible second most years. Today the expected high is only 55 degrees and it is May. This is not spring in my opinion and unfortunately, I have often found myself still in a jacket in June.

However, in anticipation of warmer days, I went out this weekend and made my yearly purchase of Impatiens. These are Annuals which are flowers that complete their life cycle in the span of one growing season. Now my husband thinks this is totally ridiculous. “Why, he asks, would you go through the trouble to purchase, pot and care for flowers and then have to do it all over again the next year?” One reason is that I love Impatiens. I plant them in window boxes and pots all over the backyard. Impatiens come in many colors and, not only do I have flowers consistently from May sometimes all the way through October, they also spread. I can begin with a few and in no time at all they will fill the container.



Another reason why I enjoy having these annuals is because it is a ritual of spring. From buying to planting, it signals something in me to anticipate and prepare, get out of my winter rut and get ready for my favorite season of all—summer. During the summer I look forward to moving my morning coffee, which I call The Coffee Hour, out of doors. The Coffee Hour is my hour (or more) of power. I love to sip my coffee, feel thankful about the now and dream of the future.

To the untrained eye, it looks like I am wasting time, but quite the contrary, here in the Coffee Hour in the quiet of the morning, it is in this relaxed mode that I take stock of where I am and plan where I am going. This is also when I do my writing. Couple this with the enjoyment of seeing the beautiful array of color greeting me every morning in all my pots and window boxes along with the warmth of the sun and the smell of summer air in the morning and I am in heaven.

In these moments of blissful relaxation, creation is a given. It is here that I come up with ideas that better my life. If you are always rushing and running through your day and then crashing a burning in the evening, when do you make sure that you are on the right path toward the destination of your choosing and not just on someone else’s treadmill?

Even if you don’t feel you can take this kind of time right now, I challenge you to take a moment (yes, even in the hustle and bustle of New York City, you CAN take a moment—just don’t do it on the sidewalk), detach from everything going on around you and focus on enjoying your coffee. Don’t think ahead to what you need to do, don’t think back to what’s already done--just sit, relax and enjoy your coffee and breathe.

In the midst of chaos, with a little discipline, you can relax and savor a moment of your life. Remember that stress is counter-productive to good health and productivity. And the surprise of it all is that the more you relax, the more you take the time to enjoy the moment you are in, smell the roses (or Impatiens in my case) the more productive, efficient and happier you become.

It’s a blissful happiness, a satisfaction with the fact that you are living life on your terms in spite of your surroundings. As you develop this inner happiness you become more observant, more confident and more creative. You will begin to make better and bolder choices as a creator of your life instead of just a cog in the wheel of someone else’s idea of how you should live. Deepak Chopra says, “And, when we harness the forces of harmony, joy, and love, we create success and good fortune with effortless ease.”

So the next time you take a coffee break don’t think of it as squandered time; think of it as a moment of power--a step toward the life and the success you’ve always dreamed of.