The Gift of Being Present : My Path To Zen

One of the more important lessons I’ve learned has been the gift of staying in the present moment. It has taken effort and practice but the advantages of staying in the here & now are numerous. The-Benefits-Of-Positive-Thinking.com article “Benefits Of Living In The Present” explains how improved concentration, increased relaxation, improved effectiveness, and more, just get better when we stay in the moment.

The more you are able to honor and accept the now…the more you are free of pain and suffering.” ~Eckhart Tolle

When I stay in the present I’m not dwelling on negative memories of the past. We can learn from past mistakes and it’s nice to remember special moments or happy times in our lives. But when we focus too much on the past, or the future, we might miss the beauty of the here and now. I love how my yoga teacher, Emily Light, described it recently in her newsletter: “When was the last time that you felt really connected to a present moment experience? Perhaps it was when you were in the woods, enveloped by the trees, with the scent of dirt and green. Or in a moment of deep stillness on your cushion… in the midst of an embrace, wrapped up in the arms of a loved one… or as you were snuggling with your furry companion.”

Five years ago….2 years ago…Today!

October 18, 2019 is the two year anniversary of this blog and the five year anniversary of the bomb drop (the day my life changed forever). For those of you unfamiliar with the term “bomb drop” it’s the date many of us found out there was infidelity in our marriage. Not a happy term or time, yet we survive and we can choose to thrive whether we stay in our marriages after infidelity, or not.

The above paragraph sounds like I might have slipped into the past replaying a painful memory. But it wasn’t like that, this year was different…for the first time in 5 years I have not looked back. My husband and I talked about the date briefly this morning and decided it wasn’t what we wanted to focus on. We chose to celebrate our successes, how far we’ve come and to appreciate the beauty in our lives now. Today is today, filled with promise and infinite possibility! The two-year anniversary of this blog is what we’re celebrating today!

Like the quote from Eleanor Roosevelt on my cover page says “Yesterday was history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is a gift, that’s why they call it the present.” I can’t change the past or predict the future, there really is only right now, this moment in time. That YOU are right here, right now, is magnificent, full of promise and possibility! If you keep your thoughts present, even difficult situations can become more manageable. When we stay focused on what’s going on in front of us our energy isn’t diluted, we make better decisions and have more productive conversations.

A Little off Topic…

During the promotion of her book “The Book of Gutsy Women” Hillary Clinton was asked what was the gutsiest thing she ever did….“stay in my marriage” was her answer. I am that kind of gutsy woman, but a woman can be equally gutsy if she makes a decision to walk away. One choice isn’t better than another, just different. Trust your intuition, it won’t let you down.