Wherever you are, be there totally – Eckhart Tolle

I remember how light bulbs lit up left, right and centre when I started reading The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle a good few years ago. One of the stories that stuck with me was that of the girl he observed that was so caught up in the conversation in her head that she was oblivious to all around her. It stuck with me because I was that girl at that point in time. I became more aware of myself and my thoughts thereafter but “living in the now was a concept that I had not fully grasped at all. I think I am a little closer to it now…

Being in the now

When I began my gratitude challenge in December, I didn’t realise it but I automatically started becoming more aware of almost each moment of each day. I started paying more attention to the people around me, places I found myself in and the things that I said and did. I began to appreciate the world around me in a way that I hadn’t before. I made more of an effort to step outside into nature to ground myself everyday as well as to be still and just take in nature’s beauty. A sense of peace started to set in. I was becoming more mindful and it felt good. I still have a long way to go but more and more often I find myself walking out the door in the morning, stopping to survey my surroundings before I close the door, and smiling. Smiling because I am blessed to have all that I do. I am blessed to be right here and right now. I am blessed because the universe is an abundant place and it has given me much. What I see before me is just the beginning. There is so much more to come.

Action in the now

Of course being in the now is great but one also has to take action in the now or nothing you desire will materialise. I have been writing this blog post in my head for days. The thing is though that you can’t read it when it is in my head. I actually have to take physical action by typing it out in order that I can share it and you can read it. It doesn’t matter what you I want to manifest. It doesn’t matter how much faith I have that it will happen or how strongly I intend for it to happen. There is always some level of action that is required of me in order to achieve my desired outcome. I don’t have to do all the work but I do have to do some. If I am sick, then I have to rest at minimum to give my body a chance to heal. If I am tired, I must physically rest. If I want to publish a story, I must write it or dictate it and let someone else write it. If I want to be loved, I have to love myself first. If I want peace then I need to do the inner work to get there. I’m sure you get the picture.

I know it sounds crazy but I was never really conscious of the fact that whatever I do today determines how I will look back on tomorrow and it determines the path I will walk and the circumstances I will face tomorrow. If we act now in an unconscious manner then we stumble through life feeling like life is controlling us. If we are conscious of every moment and of the actions that we take as well as the intentions behind our actions, then we create a life that we desire, and that we enjoy. (The control freak in me loves the idea of this!!!) Not sure if that all made sense to you. It took me a while to get my head around it so don’t feel bad if it sounds like mumbo jumbo to you right now.

I don’t think I have ever felt more alive than I do now. I still have a very long way to go on this journey that I am on but that’s ok. Just like your cars headlights only illuminate +/- 140m at a time in front of at night yet you can travel 100’s of km with just that 140m illuminated at a time, I will travel this journey one moment at a time and I will arrive safely and joyously at my desired destination. Besides, it’s not the destination but the journey that counts. 

Wishing you a beautiful and prosperous now. May each moment take you one step closer to the fulfillment of your dreams.