Enjoying My Chocolate

This past weekend I went up to Salt Lake with my new friend Jamie to see the General Relief Society Broadcast. I love to go and be a part of all the energy and excitement surrounding this wonderful meetings!
Well, as there usually is, there was a message that really has stayed with me because it was what I needed to hear. President Dieter Uchtdorf talked about 5 things we should not forget. The one that touched me was about remembering to enjoy the happiness of every day. He shared the story of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. When people start frantically looking for the golden ticket to tour the factory that is all they care about. They are then disappointed by their chocolate bar when it is not accompanied by one of those tickets. People who live their lives this way are missing out on so many things that would have otherwise made them happy.
For those of you who don't know, this spring we were planning on moving to a job out in Indiana. They had all but sent the official paperwork for a job that I was very excited about. (Ken like it too!) But in late June, they informed us that they were in a hiring freeze and would not be offering Ken a job anytime soon. This was devastating for me. I LOVE stability and I had already imagined a future in Indiana, but that was gone. So I cried for that day, but since then I've let it go.
Since then, Ken has applied for lots of jobs all over and has had some promising interviews. It seems that every week we are anticipating a job offer. None have materialized quite yet. Which is fine because he hasn't finished his thesis yet, but it will be soon.
Meanwhile, I want to nest! And since I am anticipating moving before this baby arrives I can't set up her room or decorate or hoard frozen meals. So I've used this energy to thoroughly research the four or five cities that are our most likely future homes. I can tell you where the best schools are, where the housing I am looking into is located, which hospitals have the best reputations, which midwives or doctors are covered by our current insurance and the prospective insurance we may have if we take a job with the local company. (Yeah, I've researched that too.) It has been a nice way to expend some nervous energy and feel prepared(ish) to move a couple of weeks before this baby is born.
However, yesterday I had an epiphany (supplied by my sister, Ruth) in which I realized in all of my nervous anticipation of the future I am wasting time and worrying about possible futures that may very well not happen. I need to fill my life with things that are enjoyable now and are about my life here in Provo. I'm very good at the internet and I can be fully confident that if we are offered a job in Timbuktu, I can find out the things we need to know very quickly. And there are things I don't want to miss out on here. There are museums I can visit, food I can try, crafts I can make, corners I can tidy, people I can help, errands I can run, friendships that I can strengthen. All of these things are more important than my "golden ticket" of having a stable job and home. And no amount of fretting is going to get us a job!
And seriously, we could have a job offer in a couple of days or weeks. Or it might even take several more months, but I need to focus on finding happiness in each day. I know that things will work out just fine! I want to live my life each day and not be waiting for some future event to happen before I let myself relax and enjoy things. There is no way I am going to let myself be disappointed with a great chocolate bar!