Be Here Now

My beautiful daughter Jade is graduating high school on Tuesday. Lately I’m a bundle
of emotions. I’m proud and happy that she’s all grown up and ready to independently
live in the world. Then all of the sudden I’m wistful about the days when she was
a little girl and we played dinosaur and she wore boy clothes. And then I start
worrying about her going to Senior beach week in Ocean City and wondering if she
will have enough wisdom to make good choices. And sometimes when she’s being a
self-absorbed typical teen, I think to myself, “It’s time for her to go.”
Do you see where my thoughts are? They’re all over the place! I feel sad and bittersweet
about the past and worried for the future. Guess what I’m not doing? I’m not paying
attention and enjoying the time I have NOW with her.
Think about your life. Where are your thoughts these days?
Usually we’re thinking about the past or anxious about the future.
Thinking about the past is where depression lurks and worrying about the future
is where anxiety lives.
Did you know that inner peace is only found when you keep your thoughts in the present
moment?
When we think about the past our thoughts usually go towards, “If only I would have
done things differently,” “Why did she say that?” and “I miss the good old days.”
None of these thoughts are helpful. They make you feel like you want to stay in
bed all day and pull the covers over your head.
And when we start worrying about the future, our minds spin about “what could happen”
or “what if” scenarios. Ironically, the things we worry so much about rarely happen!
So the solution and the peace is found by training the mind to stay in the present
moment. You will notice when you do this worry and anxiety disappear.
The best way to train the mind to stay in the moment is by saying an affirmation
over and over again when you start to worry about the future or fret over the past.
Repeat to yourself:
“In this moment all is well.”
or
“Be here now.”
This will bring your thoughts back to the present moment and help you to feel better.
It takes thirty days to create a habit so you must practice these affirmations over
and over until you believe them. You must fake it until you make it.
In the meantime, I still have all summer to spend time with my daughter and I plan
on enjoying every moment.
In Love and Light,
Hilary