Right where you are           Are we just victims of habit and identified with the “monkey mind” that swings relentlessly from thought to thought? We seem to always be looking for the next magic banana to connect the past with the future, while we are missing the present. I have seen people faced with life threatening situations tap into an intense desire to live, into huge reserves of power.  When these situations arise the present moment is inescapable and there is a clarity that surpasses thought and habit. The question becomes how can we access and live with that passion every day? Most boomers remember Baba Ram Dass and his classic Be Here Now. Recently Eckhart Tolle has become the spiritual guide to the “you must be present to win” crowd with his The Power of Now (Practicing the Power of Now is the abridged version).             The convenient thing about living in the Now is that you are always there and you can practice the awareness of it anytime (kind of like kegels). One method of experiencing more Now in your life is to develop awareness from the watchers perspective. That is step back occasionally throughout the day and watch yourself thinking or feeling, then without being judgmental just notice if it’s about something in the past or the future. How many times are you reliving pain or are anxious about what could happen? As Mark Twin said “I have suffered many catastrophes, most of which never happened”. Does this mean we should avoid past and future thinking? Of course, not.  Flights of future fancy are wonderful when visualizing confidence at an upcoming meeting and digging into the past to remember where you left your car keys is essential.  The past and the future have relative importance and need to be looked at, but it’s just not polite to stare.   “There’s no place like home”.  Home (right where you are) can be as simple as intentional awareness of otherwise mundane activities. Maybe it’s just me, but I catch myself standing in the shower wondering if I have washed my hair yet. Because... I was on autopilot and my mind was someplace an hour away. It’s the difference between day dreaming and meditation. Meditation is a very present activity. Daydreaming is the practice of ‘being someplace else’ (as in… not quit all here). If you get really good at it it’s called dementia.  I debate with my son, the physics teacher, that the use of the mind in thought is but a small fraction of overall intelligence and by frequently stopping the thinking process we can escape the problem of our minds using us rather than the other way around. I believe that it is in those moments of clarity when we disconnect from the clock that we are truly alive in the moment and inspiration and creativity has room to sneak in past the “know it all” guards.  If this all sounds like too much effort to be present, don’t worry the awareness that you are not being aware is a present experience.  Congratulations you are here. My wish for you from Bowen Wellness in 2008 is that you may take pleasure in simple tasks and savor the moment. I’ll be here when you need me.   Return to Articles