I read the book The Present when I was in high school. I was always a deep thinker, and I loved how it challenged me to truly experience where I was in different stages of my life. To both live each moment and to also learn from it. I tried to carry that with me throughout life, but it has not always been easy. There have been many times I have caught myself fueled with anxiety or fear. I would not move from a situation facing me because I did not know how to tackle it. I would allow the uncertainty I was feeling to get in the way of doing or saying something necessary to progress. Each time I found myself at this place, knowing I was fearful of making the wrong choice, the phrase “what if” was running on autoplay in my mind, and rather than act out the scenario with logic and experience, I stayed stuck in turmoil.
I wonder how much time we spend living in fear of the future, passing up experiencing we might have loved or missing an opportunity to grow because we were not willing to risk facing our concern. I know there are so many fears that surface when we go through a divorce. We lose control of much of our surroundings, which leaves us feeling unprepared for what lies ahead. But it does not need to. Allowing ourselves to be in the moment and to respond to an obstacle or concern with knowledge and experience rather than fear, we can overcome these feelings of anxiety and begin to discover hidden strengths and gifts within.
And what about living in the past? How often do we allow the past to be replayed in our minds allowing negative feelings to take over our peace? Learning to let go of the pain or negative emotions from the past will grant us time to be present in our lives and to be fully engaged with our loved ones and the precious time we have together. It is not productive to continually replay the past and harbor regret on time that has passed by. It is also unfair to ourselves and to those around us to hold onto previous experiences that do not bring us joy.
We need to focus on where we are right now. Be grateful for our time with our loved ones and the moments we are sharing. Celebrate the achievements and highlight the wisdom we are gaining from both the good and the bad times. It is okay to acknowledge the struggles and lessons. But let’s also do our best to be present in the moment and continue the journey of this ever-changing and oh so quickly passing life we have before us.
Let’s treasure the gifts that are happening right now in front of us.
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