Being around Lincoln every day is a masterclass in just ‘being’.

I think it is one of the gifts of him having Down Syndrome; he is somehow automatically tuned into being ‘in the moment’. This is a state of mind that I have to be extremely conscious about, as it doesn’t come naturally to me.

Lincoln’s ‘stop and smell the roses’ view on life sounds idyllic, but it used to cause me extreme anxiety almost daily as that is not how I am programmed; I like to get things done quickly; I HATE not being on time; I like to get from A to B in as straight a line and as efficiently as possible.  

But Lincoln stops to smell the flowers; watch worms; say “hi” to everyone on the way to anywhere and, more often than not, ask people we pass by random questions about themselves. Many people we know will have experienced the innocent little interruption of “Hello……what YOU doin’?”

This is indirectly how we ended up agreeing to a family dog, after many years of stating “no way”, as on our regular forest-walks we were obliged to stop and greet every furry friend along with their unsuspecting but amiable owners.

It took some getting used to. Now, rather than battling it, we supress the instinctive urge to move him quickly on from every encounter (beast, plant or human) and account for the extra time it will take to explore a little on our journeys.

In a way, I try to look at every interaction, every pause to inspect something as a sliding doors moment. What would we have missed? Who has Lincoln made smile today? Why can’t I name more than 3 types of leaf? (holly, ivy and er the other one); how come we have a dog now???!

Don’t get me wrong, there are still days where I think my head may explode as I am keeping one eye on the clock as actually, being on time is a good thing and old habits are hard to break. But I am becoming less anxious and realising that people are gracious and some things are more important than not being a minute late. I am learning to ‘be’ and am feeling the benefits.

And this season is the perfect time to do so, with Spring’s arrival and the buds (Lincoln calls new flowers ‘grows’) appearing, I will factor in the extra time it will take to notice the changes around me. I will be more ‘Lincoln’ and try to fix my mind on the good things, on the beautiful things and on the things that make me smile.