When we are aware
Of each moment that is,
This life is more precious
And not lived in a tizz.
One of the great spiritual teachers of our time, Eckhart Tolle, reminds us that we don’t have a life, we are life. Each one of us is a vibrating expression of universal consciousness. I like to imagine the sun at the centre and each of us like a golden beam, radiating out to others.
Today I was in a café waiting for a friend to arrive. The temptation to take out the phone and be distracted by something I judged to be more interesting than just Being arose but I decided instead to sit and be present in the Now. One way to do this is by being aware in our life of your surroundings through your senses. I used my eyes consciously to look around, without judgement, at all the forms both inside and outside the café. I listened to all the different sounds I could hear: the coffee machine, people talking, cars going past, rain falling on the plastic covers. I felt different parts of my body touching the chair and my hands touching my lap. My mind was still yet at the same time curious and alert. Each time my mind started to think, I gently brought it back to the present moment, like a kindly grandmother caring for a wandering toddler.
When my friend walked up to the table, I felt a sense of gratitude and joy that he had arrived safely and also for the moments I had chosen to connect with my essence through the senses. The past is history, the future is a mystery and the present is indeed a gift in life when we perceive it consciously and kindly.
