In the “busyness” of living, it’s easy to lose ourselves as well as precious moments. Learning to be fully present in the moment is a skill.
We’ve trained ourselves to always be thinking ahead, planning the next thing or move before we’ve completed the one we are actually doing.
How often do you get up and go from one thing to another thinking about the task rather than feeling your body and being with yourself and what you are doing in between?
Imagine your day consists of working at your computer, printing out documents which you then have to file. Imagine that the computer, printer and filing areas are all in different rooms.
You finish your document, click print, then walk to the printer room but while you are doing it you are thinking about all the filing you have to get done. You grab the documents as they print out, head to the filing room and put the files away but you do it thinking about the next document to print. And over and over it goes.
At no point are you with what you are doing. You are always on to the next thing, so much so that you don’t even consider that the walking from one room to another is part of your job or pay it any attention.
In this example, your body is living one situation while your brain is living another. Your physiology is being asked to do more than it needs to get the job done. It is like having lots of computer programs running all at once. It uses a lot of energy and quickly drains the battery life. How tiring and what a waste of energy.
Phew, I’m exhausted just reading it let alone living it!
Not living in the moment causes tiredness and stress. It’s no wonder so many people need to rely on caffeine and sugar to get through the day because they are running so many scenarios at once with the mind and the body doing different things instead of working together as a team.
Now imagine if you could be focused and present in all you did, from the way you sat in your chair, the way you typed on the keyboard, how you stood up, your feet on the floor and the movement of your body as you walked, the feel of the paper as you picked it up and filed it away, your breath, your thoughts and how you feel while you are working.
Could it be possible that a day spent living this way, with presence and awareness, would be less draining and more fulfilling? I’d say so. I know from personal experience that it does work because that is how I choose, to the best of my ability, to live during my day. I choose to live in the moment.
If you never live in the present what kind of life are you living?
Slow down, be with yourself, practice awareness and conscious presence.
Try standing up while feeling your body, feel your feet on the floor and whether you moved gently or not.
Try taking a few gentle breaths through your nose, feel your body and then deliberately move across the room feeling each time your foot makes contact with the ground.
Notice that moving in this way, focusing on exactly what you are doing right now, increases your awareness and quietens the mind.
It may seem strange and like a lot of effort at first, it did for me. But once you start to master it, it becomes natural and easy as you start to enjoy your body and the moment. You feel more energised and less drained as your body and mind work as one.
By paying closer attention, practicing conscious presence and being more aware of how you are, you can make conscious choices of how you spend your time. Focus on the task at hand. Learn to focus all your attention and energy on what you are doing right now and how you are doing it – whether that be your job, laundry, friends, turning on the tap, brushing your teeth or just walking.
Practice conscious presence until it becomes your natural way and reap the benefits of a quieter mind and a more energised body.
Dr Rachel Hall 