“The magic in your childhood wasn’t because you were a child, it was because you were living in the present.” ~ Unknown
I read that quote somewhere this week and it gave me pause.
My childhood wasn’t perfect (no one’s childhood is perfect), but as an adult, looking back to those days does seem magical. Was it the lack of responsibility, the knowledge that someone was looking after you, the trust and faith that skinned knees would be bandaged (after a good dose of iodine) and that there would be presents under the Christmas tree? (I know, those are all indicators of privilege).
How were entire days spent riding bikes, playing with toys, catching bugs, reading books, or listening to the radio, all without the pervasive sense of dread and disappointment that plagues so many of our days as adults?
Perhaps it is as simple as “living in the present.” One day at a time. One moment at a time. Without worry about the past or future. Can we still have that with bills to pay and appointments to keep and jobs to do? Do we have to give it up when we start adulting and can’t have it back until we retire? That doesn’t seem right. But it does seem like we fall out of practice being present at some point between childhood and adulthood and it’s hard to get back to the magic.
Eckhart Tolle talks about practicing “presence” throughout the day in the same way we would work a muscle, small efforts building to bigger ones.
But how? Ironically, the general guidelines are similar to advice for circumventing a panic attack.
Step 1: Check in with your physical senses. What do you see? Hear? Taste? Touch? Smell?
Step 2: How do you feel… not how “should” you feel, but how “do” you feel? Just observe, don’t judge. Feelings aren’t right or wrong, they just are. Acknowledge them, but don’t let them run the show.
Step 3: Breathe. It’s the most obvious advice, but you’re probably holding your breath right now. Are you? (I was.)
Step 4: If you can, go outside and touch grass. Or dirt. Or a tree. Coming from someone who generally prefers being indoors, believe me when I say this works. I hate that it works, but it does.
It doesn’t matter what else is going on, you always have “right now.” It’s really the only thing we have, this present moment. We tend to dwell in a past that’s over or a future that doesn’t exist, both things over which we have no control. Food for thought.
