Be Here Now: A 'Handy' Technqiue
But once you learn that the present moment is the one that holds the real magic, training yourself to return to it allows you to more liberally use its potent gifts. Now, after all, is the only moment that allows you to make choices, the only one in which you can act. The more you're rooted in the present, the more consciously you can direct your life, and the more richly you'll experience it.
Learning to be in the present is a skill like any other, mastered through attention and practice. To remind yourself to turn your attention to the present moment, try the Helping Hands Technique:
Sit in a comfortable position and allow yourself to relax as completely as you can. Then raise your hands up as if you were holding an open book. Imagine that you never noticed your hands before and examine them with curiosity, without making any judgment about their appearance, accepting them completely, just as they are. Wiggle, bend, and stretch your fingers. Touch the tip of each finger with your thumbs. Make a fist and then fling your hand wide open. Note the texture and color of your skin, the lines on your palms.
Then turn your hands over and look at the backs of them, at the creases at the knuckles, at the texture and shape of your nails and the way they contrast with your skin. Make a fist again and notice how the points and hollows where your fingers meet your hands.
Now just let your hands move free-form in whatever way they want, and as you watch them play, tell yourself that whenever you notice your hands from now on, you will remember to return your attention to the present. If you like, repeat the phrase, "Here and now" as you turn your hands back and forth from front to back, memorizing their appearance.
Finally, let your hands rest comfortably in your lap, close your eyes and let yourself feel their aliveness, their warmth and weight. For a few moments, let your attention rest softly on them and remind yourself that whenever you notice them your mental focus will return to the present. Send your hands a thought of appreciation for all they do for you and for the way they will now assist you in living more fully in the now. Then, counting slowly from one to five, return to full wakefulness and enjoy the sensation of alert, centered consciousness as you return to your day.
Every time you notice your hands after this exercise, you will unfailing shoot back into the present moment. Once you're here, choose to be happy in it, for it truly is full of power, beauty and joy.
Related Tags: present, now, the present, conscious living
Susan K. Minarik offers readers a practical, empowering path for achievement in her book, "Winning the Tomorrow Game: How to Discover and Create the Life of your Dreams," available at http://www.thetomorrowgame.com
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