The Present Moment is a magical place that everyone visits briefly and few ever stay long enough to reap the full benefits. Some try to take up permanent residence there, but they usually end up making their present moment so small that they end up limiting or losing their connections to the larger world. Living in the Present or mindfulness can range from one consciously focused minute to an hour or more if you can do it.
When you are fully involved in The Present Moment with your mind focused on what you are seeing, hearing, feeling, and/or doing, your body automatically begins shifting into a relaxation mode. When, by degrees, you can be aware of the pleasure of what you are seeing, hearing, feeling, and/or doing, your body relaxes even more deeply. As that begins to happen, the release of tension allows your body to muster its resources and start healing physical and emotional injuries and the effects of excessive stress. This doesn’ always happen instantly, but the more often you stay a while in The Present Moment the more often the healing happens, even without any intentional effort. At the same time as an additional benefit, the whirlwind of negative, conflicting, or confusing thoughts begins to calm down.
It takes discipline to enter The Present Moment” and stay there for any length of time. This does not mean the use of any kind of forced concentration that causes stress. It does mean having enough desire to make your life better that you are willing to pay attention to something without any thoughts of past, future, or negative stuff that may be going on around you. Some people will not do this, because they are unwilling to experience the initial discomfort of changing a familiar habit, or they are unwilling to give up the payoffs they may get from continuing a life of stress and negativity. Sorry about that. What I’m proposing will only work if you are willing to do it even tnough it might be difficult at first. So here are a number of techniques for helping you to enter and stay awhile in The Present Moment. All of them are extremely simple, and some will be familiar. It is conscious awareness and intention that makes them so effective.
1. Wherever you are, look at objects close by, listen to sounds around you, and touch a few things within reach. To make it even more interesting for your conscious mind and your body, look at shapes or colors, listen to high and low sounds, and be aware of the texture and temperature of the things you touch. Do this for as long as you can find it interesting.
2. Using a watch or clock with a second hand (or digital readout), count the number of times you breathe naturally in one minute. Then take a moment to pay attention to sight, sound, and touch, and count your natural breaths again. The number will usually be a lot less, indicating a reduction in stress and an increase in relaxation. I just did this while writing this article. My first count was 9 breaths per minute, and after a few seconds of sensory awareness the count was 4. This can be used for a short visit to The Present Moment, or as an introduction to a longer session.
3. Meditate on (pay attention to) something beautiful in your environment. Nature is a natural for this, and walking in nature helps to maintain the focus. Nevertheless, it’s possible to find beauty in anything. I once achieved a state of bliss by meditating on the beautiful relationship between two paper cups on a table in a shopping mall.
4. Play a non-competitive game or sport that requires total focus and not a lot of effort. I find that skiing on gentle slopes and kayaking on calm waters works well for me. Actually, any game or sport can work as long as you focus on the pleasure of the playing and not on the winning.
5. Engaging in a handicraft that requires total focus can work very well. Painting, weaving, photography, woodworking, purposeful doodling like Zentangle and many other things that involve mind and body working together are excellent for relieving stress and inducing relaxation. However, be careful of crafts that are so repetitive that the mind can wander out of present moment awareness.
THE PRESENT MOMENT, 99% of the time, is a place of peace and healing. It is an incredibly effective resource available to anyone. You can use it to change your life from despair to hope to joy.
--------Pamela Turner
Pamela A. Turner, M.Ed., C.Ht. has extensive training in counseling psychology (M.Ed.),
hypnotherapy (C.Ht.), Neurolinguistic Programming (Master), Emotional Transformation,
Energy Healing, Law of Attraction (Practitioner) and is a Huna Shaman and
longtime Toltec student. She specializes in creating products and writing
to help people understand and master their inner energies
to live happy, healthy and free lives