Our Perspective About: "The Present of Being Present"

Being present is the greatest gift you can give to yourself and others. The present of being present is about bringing your whole self to the current moment in a respectful, healthy, peaceful and balanced manner. It is about being aligned in body, heart, mind and spirit in the now. When we are aware, mindful and connected to our own deep inner spirit, we are more able to connect with everyone and everything around us. 

- Peg Donahue and Karen Kallie

 Thoughts On Being Present    

   Why is being  “present” at times so very challenging  and not always a “constant”?
Because it takes time
                 and time is the  new currency of this
                                                      century.
Each new day comes with a gift-but we need to ask for it~
     Be “open  ....  Be in “gratitude”.....But how?
              
                     FOCUS and PAY ATTENTION
                             (a good start)
                      YOUR ATTENTION PLEASE!
    By focusing on one  person/thing at a time we can transform each moment.
     If you are e-mailing,eating and watching TV you are not
              paying attention to any one thing.
  Our attention is pure energy – it transforms whatever it comes in contact with....animals and small children have this all figured out.
             This is why  FOCUS is so crucial.
              Be still for a part of each day~
              it enhances your ability to observe.
               Focus can be elusive.
If your life feels like you have been thrown out of paradise without so much as a fig leaf.....
                Focus can be a challenge.
       You don’t want have to think about “it”....whatever the “ it” may be that crowds  a quiet moment...
So maybe start in simple gratitude.
Write  an inventory of what is good in your life>right this moment.
With the power of attention we can transform each moment ~
                                                         each relationship ...
    I used to think that life was about some special place,person or event but it truly isn’t just that...it come down to time (once  again) and how you spend it whether it is one more hour,twenty minutes, or twenty years.
Every prayer you pray is rooted in time.
                   Leave  your fear.
                   Pray...meditate
     Tears may come....for we have forgotten that crying is an ancient form of articulated prayer.In Catholic and  Eastern Orthodox religions tears have always been considered one of the gifts of the  Holy Spirit, in the Hebrew Old Testament we have the “Book of Lamentations”
     Sometimes you need to cleanse to  “be  still”.

   You can’t “see’ everything....the world is round for just that reason....there is always a new horizon just beyond.
    You have this present moment before you.
   If you are going to choose your own truth you need to slow down long enough to view it.
                        Be Still
                        Center
                        Pay attention
      experience the fullness of life not matter how much water
              is in the glass.
                   Start with us  here
                   Start now.  
                                                                  Sally Harris
                                                       EOE, 2011

At this moment, right now .. I am thinking of all the people I know and care about who are rushing through their lives as if they are in a race to the finish. If I pretend to be a onlooker, behind the tape that separates the race participants from those watching and cheering .. I realize that I am standing silent - hoping to see them stop and walk out of the herd of runners. I remember when I too ran in that race, allowing life's precious moments to fly by me in a blur. It wasn't until I lost loved ones .. and several at that.. before I learned how to slow down ... and allow the other racers to pass me by. It wasn't until I let go of the "worry" and embraced the freedom of possibilities ...that I could stop focusing on tomorrow, the next week, the next month.  

Today, the present of being present is that I can sit on a rock in the woods and marvel at the fact that because I am still .. I get to notice the woodpecker in the birch above me, or the chipmunk peeking out of the log in front of me .. or the curious smile of my child as he discovers a salamanders tail sticking out from under a leaf. The present of being present means that I listen to people as if there is nothing more interesting in the world than what they have to say, and it means that every interaction with another person is an opportunity to learn something amazing .. about them or about myself.

These are the moments that fill our souls .. these are the real trophies that those in the race may never get to experience.

The present of being present for me also means that when I eat, I am fully aware and filled with gratitude for the nourishment I am providing my body. It means that I respect where my food comes from and I honor it by paying attention to its flavor, texture and the fulfillment it gives me.

These are all ways that the PRESENT of Being Present have meaning for me.

Kelly Lang