A Blog, now there's something I never saw coming. I wonder, and ask myself, "don't you have to be somewhere before you begin to blog; why blog when life is nothing but ordinary, the most ordinary of ordinary?" Yet, undeniably, there is a desire to say something about the ordinary life. What I mean by the ordinary life is the present moment, a showing up to what actually is. This sounds so trite, so easy, but, in reality, it is hard to do. Honestly, for the longest time I believed the thoughts in my head were the present moment, actually for most of my life. It has taken long years of practice and commitment to both recognize the thoughts in my head and make a conscious choice about what to do with them. What has opened up, although still a work in progress, is a whole new way of showing up to ordinary life.
If you are truly present to the moment it can feel ordinary, maybe even boring, because it is uncluttered. It is uncluttered by thoughts about the past or future, thoughts such as "they always talk too much" or "when will I catch a break." When these types of thoughts are stilled the basic unit of NOW seems, initially, empty and can be missed. A simple test to gauge if I'm fully showing up is to ask myself if there is any tension or stress currently held in my body or emotions? If so, then I know this tension or stress reveals a desire, however subtle, to be somewhere, anywhere, but right here right now. Initially this practice took place in hindsight by engaging in a curiosity about how I'd shown up to a given situation. You can do this too by setting aside a short quiet time each day to ask yourself if there were any hints of tension or stress in your body or emotions in a situation of your choosing. As an aside, if you're not fully tuned into your body (yet) these tensions and stresses come out as the thoughts and stories we hear in our head saying things like, "why did they say that" or "I should have said such and such when they said so and so."
So, the right here right now story in my head says that blogging can begin when somewhere is a reality. If I'm really still, and really honest, I can feel in my body the tension when I actually consider creating a blog and pushing the publish button. Upon closer reflection of this thought-story it dawns on me that today is somewhere even if the thought-story says otherwise. This story about being somewhere is a learned thought that emerged from many different sources; family, academia, culture, religion and from the wounds received as a partaker of the human family. These sources helped reinforce an ideal I held (and obviously still hold) that says once a person gets somewhere life finally and fully begins. Funny thing is a lifetime can be spent waiting and the waiting option isn't very appealing these days. Somewhere is now! Living this moment, even while noticing the story, is the most appealing option. It also means that the publish button will get pressed.
I'd love to hear your thoughts, struggles or insights with living in the present moment. Please leave your comments below or contact me directly with any comments or questions.
Peace, light and love to you on this day.
