Living In the Moment

I was going through some old blog posts of mine from my first blog, Niki's Odds and Ends and I ran across this one.  Considering how much my life has changed in the past five years, I felt this post was extra beneficial for myself and hopefully others as well.  I hope you enjoy!

Okay I know... everyone talks about this. Maybe because it is such a great topic! 

I am writing about it because I recently read an article from “Single Dad Laughing” blog on this very topic. I was quite impressed by what he had to say, but I think it was a bit of an overload for myself. Here is the link:

http://www.danoah.com/2010/11/before-number-changes.html

Check it out and see for yourself. It might be life changing for you or you might be a bit overwhelmed like I was. My head had a difficult time wrapping itself around what he was saying.

I have gone to a self help group where they stressed the same topic, along with listening to several different speakers like Dr. Wayne Dyer and Eckhart Tolle. I believe these authors are extremely intelligent and they inspire me every time I listen to them, but I like it in more simple terms.

Here goes:

When I am not worried about time and I am living in the now, just doing what I love to do or staying focused on the tasks on hand, this is when I am the most productive. 

Whether it is exercising, playing with my kids, cleaning my house, painting walls, writing or anything I can think of, I am able to get MORE done if I do not worry about the time. 

I can see the power of living in the now. I know it can seem weird when someone says “time does not exist” or “the past does not exist”. In my opinion (I could be completely wrong, which is not unusual) it is just their way of explaining the power of living in the now and not staying stuck in the past or worrying about the future. There is no point to either one of those.

 Remaining stuck in the past could make a person feel a constant victim because of the things in the past which hurt them or it can keep someone from moving on from sad times in their lives or even more happy times in their lives. 

Why would someone want to leave a time that was far more happy? 

I get why it would be hard at times, but to progress in life it is absolutely necessary. Life should be taken as one lesson after another. Some times they are happy lessons and other times they are horrible, painstaking lessons, but nonetheless they are lessons for us to grow and learn from so we can continue to progress. 

Saying “the past does not exist” would say everything I have learned to get me to be the person I am today does not exist, therefore the strengths I have gathered do not exist. 

Allowing the hardships to become lessons and learning to move on despite the pain is a way to become a better person right now, in this very moment.  I could take those lessons and progress because of them and realize that was all they were or I could be stuck back in those lessons forever feeling imprisoned by the sadness in my life.

Now I love to day dream... silly huh! 

I like to think of life when I accomplish the goals I have in my mind. I don’t do it often, but when I do it is my time to let go of reality as I now know it. Some people would say I am not being realistic, but I say phooey on them. 

Take Walt Disney... didn’t it all start with a dream? 

I believe if you take away someone’s dreams you take away their motivation and desire to be better in all areas of their lives. The future has not happened yet and it rarely turns out exactly the way we want it to be... usually it is better, at least for me. However, those dreams motivate me and they get me moving when I am too tired or too worn out from a long day of work, kids, chauffeuring, cleaning, etc. 

 

I say there is nothing wrong with dreaming, as long as a person keeps it in perspective and knows in order to get from point A to point B, they have to work hard while enjoying every step along the way.

One more point on living in the now... Have you ever noticed how you feel when you are in the middle of a dangerous and exhilarating amusement park ride?

I know I feel like I am on top of the world!

I am laughing, screaming and enjoying every moment of it. Take the Tower of Terror at Disneyland. I love that ride! The whole time I am IN the now and enjoying the ride moment to moment to moment. 

We pay A LOT of money to feel this way. However, although it might not be as exhilarating, actually focusing on being in the now more often then not can give you a very similar experience. It is a very HAPPY and CONTENT feeling. A JOY which can be felt constantly as long as you choose to live 

moment to moment instead of “thinking” about everything else in life.

I challenge everyone who is reading this blog to take themselves out of the past and the future as much as possible and enjoy what is right in front of you. Yes, even the mundane commute to and from work! 

Sing in the car, smile at your neighbor car as you sit in rush hour traffic... you could change their day and yours as well.

The next day “Single Dad Laughing” wrote a continuation of his post about the past does not exist. I thought it was wonderful. He has an amazing talent and I get where he is coming from better than I did yesterday. So here is a link to his next post if you have not already read it:

http://www.danoah.com/2010/11/my-dancing-black-duck.html

PS... I love to dance, especially with my kids. It does put you in the moment and when your kids giggle and scream because their mom is BEING with them in this moment (well and because they are being twirled and dipped could have a part in it too) it brings so much JOY and SWEET INNOCENCE to your soul. I hope everyone enjoyed this little rant today. Share with others if you get a chance and peace be with all you!