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Daily Question, February 2

How can I improve my capacity to be present?

  • wanja

    being grateful for the lessons in the past and embracing now.

  • Anonymous

    Listening to “Becoming Stillness” by Franciscan Monk Richard Rohr and hearing the truth of it, meet the wild beast.

  • Elaine

    Keep showing up to this beautiful site and community of practitioners.
    Grateful living is about being present and requires constant practice!

  • Malag

    There’s nothing limiting in my capacity to be present. I just need to realise that I am here. One “trick” I can build on some more is to associate presence with a routine task like cleaning my teeth. And then spread to some of the many other activities of the day.

  • ADP

    Be more aware of my surroundings, not take things for granted. Don’t just spend my days going through the motions. Each day brings something new. Something new to learn or to experience. If you are not truly present you will miss it.

  • Melissa

    Take three deep breaths and listen, hold my voice. Embrace what I see and what is in front of me in the moment. Stop my mind from going all over the place my taking in the moment with each breath.

  • mam_gigi

    To be present, I would have to set aside my anxiety for the future and never-ending t0-do list and instead really be observant and avaible in the moment I am in.

  • Elle

    Pay attention to the background noise. Don’t let myself get deeper & deeper into the hole- but, when the past or future starts invading my ‘headspace’…..gently release it [or, when need be] get the 250 lb. Bouncer-of-my-mind to escort those busy-bodies AWAY {while} getting to a present breath & what’s right in front of me.

  • Layla

    Knowing that tomorrow is not promised. Embracing today.

  • Don Jones

    By being quiet.

  • pkr

    Remind myself often thru out the day to breathe. Focusing on my breath not only calms me but reminds me to be in the moment, the present moment.

  • Antoinette

    I can improve by using the energy of mindfulness to come back from a mind either off in the future or lost in the past. Then I can come back to the present moment and notice all of the goodness around me! Mindfulness is the energy which helps to shine light on what’s really happening.
    What’s really happening? Most of the the time there is almost always something to enjoy and be grateful for!
    Mindfulness is the magic of healing and love!

  • Linda

    Just do it. I know how, I just need to do it.

  • Charlie T

    So much good advice here. Real wisdom. I think meditation is helping me. Also, caching myself when I slip into past or future thinking. I know it’s a sign that something is off and I’m escaping from this moment.

    • Laura M.

      Your post has helped me! Those last two lines really reminded me I need to meditate more often. Thank you!

  • Stefania Miseria

    I am never anywhere but rather everywhere at the same time. Scattering myself is easy, the hardest thing is to be here and that even when I write these words.

  • Holly in Ohio

    In this moment, I need to let go of an irritation, so I can enjoy THIS moment, rather than sour it by dwelling on the irritation that was. 🙂

    Time for a delicious coffee!☕

  • Carol
    I find practicing mindfulness extremely helpful. I have to pause, check in and see what I'm telling my self. A lot of voices live in my head and sometimes it's necessary to call a meeting and remind them who's chairman of the board! I have to be present to myself before I can be present to others. This question reminds me of a poem I wrote in 2009. I share it below. Have you ever noticed that the words "Now here" and "No where" contain the same letters? Now Here or No Where If one is not ...

    I find practicing mindfulness extremely helpful. I have to pause, check in and see what I’m telling my self. A lot of voices live in my head and sometimes it’s necessary to call a meeting and remind them who’s chairman of the board! I have to be present to myself before I can be present to others. This question reminds me of a poem I wrote in 2009. I share it below. Have you ever noticed that the words “Now here” and “No where” contain the same letters?

    Now Here or No Where

    If one is not NOW HERE,
    one is NO WHERE

    The intellect craves a place.
    The spirit flows like the wind
    into every nook and cranny.

    When someone recounts an experience,
    they might say, “You had to be there.”
    But to truly “be there” you have to “be here,”
    Present to the one sharing the memory.

    You can run “there” to get away from “here,”
    But you most likely will find yourself
    NO WHERE,
    lost and disappointed.

    Now Here or No Where
    Your choice moment by moment

    Read More
  • Patricia

    Having a good night of sleep improves my capacity for presence, for kindness, for almost everything good in my life.

  • EJP

    Stop. Look . Go.

  • Mary Pat

    Definitely meditation! Practicing is a plus for staying in the present moment. I have an app on my iPhone that stays breathe, and you can set it for a certain number of times a day, and it pops up for me during the day to remind me to take a moment and breathe. This really connects me to the moment.
    There are times when I am deeply scattered, and Kevin reminded me in his writing that I used to go to YouTube and watch the Tibetan monks humming/singing mantras. Thanks Kevin for the reminder!

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