This may or may not surprise you, but the majority of us are walking around without really being present. Now you may think; How is that possible? How can you be living and breathing and surviving without being present for the majority of the time? But it’s actually really common and much easier than you’d think!
Presence & Being Present
If you really think about it, are you truly present? In the moment, taking it all in? Or are you on autopilot? I’d never believe that I was manoeuvring through my days on autopilot, but when I really think about it, most of the time, I am. You see, for many of us, our minds are processing so much that they skip over the present – which seems weird because what’s more important than what’s happening right now?
For many of us, we are thinking about the past or what is going to happen in the future, and as a result, we miss the present altogether. Now, of course, we are here, and we are partaking, but we are not fully present.
Living life without presence is like wasting an opportunity to see the world for what it truly is. When we skip over the present, we are missing out on valuable living time. The present is the only part of life we have the power to change. We cannot change the past, and the future hasn’t happened yet, so we can’t change that either – without being in the present, of course.
Stress & Living A Stressful Existence
I don’t fully know if our ancestors were truly more present than our generation. That’s a whole lot of research I haven’t been able to conduct yet. What I will say, though, is our lives today are much more stress-induced than past lives. That stress seems to contribute to this lack of living in the present. A great way to destress is to take a moment in the present – the irony! Perhaps we are more stressed because we don’t check in with the present enough.
We know that an anxious mind is often one spent worrying too much about the future, and a depressed mind usually spends too much time worrying about the past. If only we could keep ourselves in the present.
Nobody wants to miss out on life’s great wonders, but you can not fully experience them without becoming fully present.
Ways To Be More Present
- Sit Still With Limiting Distractions focusing only on your breath – this can become a meditation if you feel inclined, but if you struggle, just take a moment to be still and conscious of your breath.
- Take a moment to focus on what it is you are doing fully. Take in all the senses – smell, sight, sound etc. If you are drinking or eating, really focus on the taste – how many times do you glug a cup of coffee without fully tasting it?
- Listen to your thoughts. What are they saying, and why? Do you ever really listen to what thoughts you are having?
- Find the beauty and the joy in the moment right now. A blossoming flower, the warm sun on your skin or laughter in the distance. When you stop for a moment, you can see the genuine joy between the moments.
Do you take time to be present? Or is life skipping by without realisation. Here is your chance to make a change.
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Love as always!
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