- The takeaway from this episode is … you can’t see it when you’re in it.
- Here’s what this will do for you … you must increase your awareness to recall what happened in the present moment.
- Here’s what I want you to do with it … test your awareness. Write down what you were able to recall.
NOTE: The “italic text” within this post is channeled from Linda’s Spirit Guides and Angels
You hear people say all the time – that you need to focus on the present moment.
Stop and think about what that means. You have to stop time and focus on one element of time called the present moment. We will tell you that what they are telling you to do is impossible.
Here is an example. What if we told you to focus on a speeding bullet? Could you do it, or would you just hear the gunfire and see a whizzing bullet fly by so quickly it would be invisible? You can’t slow the bullet down in order to view it as it’s in motion. The bullet is the present moment in time. It’s moving at such a speed that you can’t see it. It’s impossible to slow down even if you could see it.
If you can’t focus on the present moment what do you do?
The present moment is not an element of time, like something segmented along a continuum that can be singled out and observed. The present moment can only be experienced as an awareness. An awareness of what’s going on around you in totality at any moment. Once you start to focus you have lost the present moment, it’s gone by, it’s part of this time continuum that rules your world.
Let’s look at something like pain. Do you like to focus on your pain? Your pain is part of the present moment but focusing on it only makes it worse. When you forgot about your pain you didn’t feel it or feel it as much. You can be aware of your pain and still go on with everything else in your life. In fact, someone could ask you, “How’s your arm? Is it still painful?” You may not have thought about it even though you may still have some pain in it in the present moment. This awareness is what you must allow yourself to experience. You can look out the window and see it raining, it’s happening in this continuum.
You can look out and see how big the raindrops are and what it must feel like. However, to gain complete awareness you must go outside, close your eyes, breathe, and stand in the rain. This is being aware of this rainstorm. The present moment is what you actually surrender to as it’s presently going on around you all the time. This is what is meant by “being in the moment” but it’s not focusing on any singular present moment or event.
Many people will have great difficulty doing this because of their need to control a situation.
To stop yourself from repeating this pattern you must admit that you have been forcing what you want the present situation to be. This is when your awareness takes over so you can begin to force out any other thoughts that keep you stuck and out of sync with the present moment. But before you can understand what the present moment is you must let go of time, go inside yourself, breathe, close your eyes, and feel what is happening right now, and the next moment, and the next. Even if you can remember how past moments felt you must be aware of all the future moments coming toward you as they happen – the moment they happen without holding onto them.
CALL TO ACTION: Start your Self-Examination
- You can’t see it when you’re in it, that’s why it’s impossible to focus on the present moment. Writing down what happened will bring clarity.
- Time keeps you from isolating any one thing that happens in the present moment.
- Being in the moment is an awareness and not something you can force.
HOW IT WORKS: Being in the present moment and being aware … are two different things. To fully experience this fleeting “present moment” you need to become comfortable with being in it, like when you were a kid. That means you need to focus on the experience and not the outcome. The present moment is a living, changing, breathing thing that will require you to heighten your awareness. This is the only way you can master the present moment – not hold onto it. Now, imagine being eager about experiencing these present moments. Does this remind you of your early childhood days? Recall that daring child who could do anything. That’s when you thrived on being in the present moment when hours passed like minutes. From this awareness, let your urge to ride with the present moment fire up your true nature once again. This can only happen when you release your grip on controlling any moment. ~ Linda Deir
RELATED ARTICLES:
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How to Live in the Moment: 35+ Tools to Be More Present – Positive Psychology
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It’s Impossible to Live in the Present Moment – Psychology Today
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Why Being Present Is So Difficult (And What You Can Do About It) – mbg Mindfulness
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How to Start Living in the Moment and Stop Worrying – LifeHack
