I read this morning – “Every moment of your experience is the peak of life experience. This is where your powerful now is.” This is something I need and want to remember right now.
I like to remember that my day, my life, is a series of Nows, and that I have the option to have a good Now or a bad Now. Or even a not-as-good Now. Or a wonderful Now. But that I have a choice.
Sometimes it doesn’t feel like the choice is mine. Sometimes it feels like it’s all coming at me – the good, the bad, the hard, the sweet, the challenging – too quickly for me to be in control. It seems that all I can do is react, rather than intentionally respond. But maybe that’s not true.
Maybe I do have the choice of how I respond to what comes my way; even if I respond to what comes my way. Maybe I have the option to spend more time living and reliving and relishing the good and the wonderful. Maybe I can actively and intentionally delight in those moments more, stretching them out and squeezing out all the good I can. Maybe I can actively look for the good and the wonderful even more. And maybe I can give much less attention in my Now to the things that are hard or challenging or bad. Maybe I can turn the other way or turn the other cheek. Maybe I can glance over the tough and painful things quickly, and give them less weight in my life and less impact in my Now.
When I do this, when I determinedly focus on what feels good, I feel good. Wow, radical thought. And when I understandably allow myself to be pulled into what feels bad, I feel bad. You would think I would learn from that.
I read recently that stress-resistant people are often in “optimistic denial.” They distort reality and see things in the best possible way. Research has shown that the denial of minor, everyday problems can be healthy. That minimizing, ignoring, or denying minor problems reduces stress and makes life more manageable. I think I can learn from that.
My day, my life, is a series of Nows. Right now all I have is this Now. It is my choice what I do with it and how I respond to it and how I engage with it. It is my choice how I spend my Now. Will I get caught in the challenge that’s sapping my energy, or will I deny it and find something else to focus on? Will I allow frustration to overtake me, or will I look for what brings a smile to my face? Will I allow myself to feel defeated by something that just occurred, or will I relish what I love? Will I lose hope, or will I choose hope?
How am I spending my Now?
I’d love to hear your thoughts, and please share this post with others if it resonates with you!
Thank you Lisa. This truly made me think. It made me realize too, that I do sometimes choose the good in my life to focus on and it does feel good and right. I also try to find the good in even the worse situations…not sure if that is good for my Now…or not. Thank you for these thoughts to consider…as life is just to short not to focus on what is right now.
Cheryl
Thank you Cheryl. I do think and hope that trying to find the good is good for my Now. And, as you say, either way, life is too short to miss Now. 🙂