All we have is Now

The Past is gone, the future is not certain and all we have is Now. Live for the moment. Everything you feel and sense takes place in the present.

The first time I really paid attention to this statement was while I was reading  “The Power of Now” by Eckhart Tolle. The book inspired me and created curiosity. It allowed me to explore the meaning of what it meant to live in the present and how by not choosing to live this way can have a serious affect on our whole life.

Let’s look at what it’s like to live with the constant reminders of the past. In my next blog I will concentrate on people who are always thinking about the future.

Should we not be holding on to every single part of our past since each day, week, month and year had an impact on the person we are today?

It is true that our experiences and memories mould us. They help us to grow and teach us what we want and also what we do not want in our lives so we can go on to make better choices and learn from our mistakes. On the flip side it is also true that when we choose to hold on to our past or worry about our future we are not allowing ourselves to appreciate what we have right now. We are putting unnecessary strain on our body and mind for experiences which are impossible to change.

So what can we do instead? Instead we can learn from our past, thank it for the lessons we needed to learn and then LET IT GO! Sometimes this has to be done with the help of a coach or therapist since so many of our thought patterns have been inherited from childhood and can be rooted very deep into our belief system. You can contact me at donnaedmistonmindmatters.com  to set up a discovery call to see if we would be a good fit to work together. Once you are able to confront these thoughts, understand where they have come from and accept them you can then begin the process of letting them go. This is both powerful and liberating.

Can I Change the Outcome

I’d like you to think about whether find yourself saying

“I wish I hadn’t done that?

“If only I had…

“If I could go back and do it again I would do it differently

By doing this you are not giving yourself an opportunity to live in the present and there is a good chance you live your life with what if’s and regrets.

I understand, I can relate completely as I have in the past been guilty of saying all of these things, I have allowed these thoughts to consume me and take over from any joy I could have been having in the present moment. All because I could not let go of the past. The question is “Did it make one iota of difference?” No of course it didn’t. There is no way to go back to the past. It has gone forever.

So the next time you feel the worry and anxiety creep up ask yourself “Has this already happened and if so, can you do anything to change it? If the answer in No stop and ask yourself “What is happening right now, in this very moment” Embrace it and feel it with every fibre of your being. This is what it feels like to live in the present.

The present is where we experience joy, happiness and the feeling of being alive. This is the only moment you can control. When you live this way you will experience more calm and your mind will open up. Living in the present means anything and everything is possible.