We hear about it everywhere. Religions preach it. Modern day gurus write books about it. Magazine write articles about it. And children naturally live it. We may feel that, somehow, while we grow up, we lose the ability to live presently. I don't think we do, but it sure can feel like it as challenging as it can be within the responsibilities, obligations, and demanding, fast-paced life we become so familiar with as adults. We just have to remind ourselves how to do it, over and over. Make a practice of it and soon, find it coming back. Naturally.
This is my journey about being present. A journey about how I achieve it within the non-stop life of being a mom, a wife and a woman maintaining her individual identity. Topics I write about come from what I do to live presently, like yoga and other spiritual or every day practices, and what has come as a result of living presently, like natural parenting, green living, and amazing experiences with my son.
It's not an answer to everyone's challenges out there in the world, and I am by no means an expert on, well, anything. But this is what works for me. I hope it is, at the least, a little inspiring.
Here are some of the core practices that most of my posts are based upon...
- Taking Care of Self- One of the hardest things to do for a busy mom, but one of the most important. I try to take care of my whole self: mind, body and soul. In order to address all of these, I eat wholesome/organic food, get regular exercise, practice yoga, set aside "me time" and "girl time", attend women's circles, and educate myself about all of it when I can. (It's a lot to fit in, but it's worth it!)
- Simplifying Life- This is a challenge that both my husband and I work together on a lot. We consistently evaluate our priorities on how to spend our time, money and energy. This means saying no to a lot (separating obligation from responsibility), but getting big rewards in return. We also take a good look at how much "stuff" we accumulate and keep it organized.
- Putting it into Action- My biggest teacher in this has been my son, Everett. Simply watching him has been inspiring, No matter what, in the middle of a tantrum or in the midst of adventure, he's all there and only there. Yoga and meditation really help, too :)
- Owning my Life- This is difficult sometimes. It requires owning the consequences for the decisions I've made, which we all know isn't always easy. It requires owning my emotions, which can be difficult for a lot of us that tend to live in our head, over-analyzing how we feel and automatically moving into "how do we fix this?" And it requires owning my happiness; letting go of what isn't working and working for what will achieve it.
- Listening- I listen to what I need, not in my head, but with my heart and intuition. Being aware of my connection to everything around me helps me to listen to what my divine source and higher self needs. This takes a lot of practice staying out of my head and letting life flow.
- Passing it On- The ultimate motivation for me, "How can I help my child(ren) be whole and present to their lives?" This is reflected in the choices I make about parenting, relationships and taking care of myself.
