why we leave life’s greatest gift unopened

If you’re always focused on ‘what’s next,’ you will miss the beauty of now.

The unhappiest times in my life were the times I was never present.

I felt lost, uncentered and powerless when I removed myself from the present through social media, alcohol and drugs.

I detached myself from the world, the people around me, and myself.

I walked around like a zombie, feeling empty and drained.

I knew something had to change. This change occurred when I took the time to read The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle.

I can’t say exactly what happened, but Mr. Tolle was very ‘toll’ (meaning excellent in German). His words triggered something profound within me, forcing an internal rewiring which radically altered my perspective on my life in the present moment. I started to look at everything differently.

I understood running after the future would never bring peace and tranquillity.

I began to realise the present moment was a gift — a present.

To fabricate a favourable future you must focus all your energy on the present.

Remind yourself of how fortunate you are to be alive.

Know your existence on this Earth is a gift.

Be comfortable with the knowledge you could die at any time — even as you’re reading the words on this page.

why do we treat the present like an unopened gift we’ve thrown down into the basement?

Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment – Buddha

When you receive a gift, you open it because you can’t wait to open it.

The present moment is a gift we leave unopened.

We throw it into the dark basement of our homes and forget about it.

It remains in the basement because we’re sometimes scared of what we’ll see.

Sometimes, we’d rather not confront the discomfort of the present.

But you must live in the present moment to move through it.

There’s no way to skip what you’re going through now — one way or another, you will have to face it if you want to put it behind you for good.

Face reality because it’s necessary for progress.

Confront life now to lighten your load and remove any baggage.

Leaving the present unopened causes more misery, suffering, and pain.

The unknown is always worse than the known.

Maybe you’ll have to uproot the foundations of your life. Maybe you’ll have to plant new seeds. Maybe you’ll have to start over.

But this is the beauty of the present moment.

Change.

We avoid change because it causes suffering.

And we convince ourselves change can come another day.

There is no other day.

You could go to bed tonight and die.

Unwrap the present and experience it exactly for what it is.

Despite the fact it may not be exactly as you imagined, the beauty of life lies in its perfect imperfections. It’s the constant pursuit of self-discovery through change.

So, go into your basement and dust off the present you’ve neglected.

Open it up to know what it is.

Open it to begin managing it one step at a time.

nothing but the present is guaranteed

Life is available only in the present moment – Thích Nhất Hạnh

Another one of my favourite books to read this year has been The Heart of the Buddha’s Teachings by Thích Nhất Hạnh. I passed it on to a friend because I thought he would benefit from reading it. He loved it.

I wrote an article about one of my key takeaways from the book here.

It was written at a time when I was feeling lost and dejected.

We suffer because we decide to.

And much of the suffering we experience in life is due to the discomfort we experience in the present moment. It’s the dissatisfaction with life as it is now.

But when you’re not present, you drift.

When you drift, you begin to think about everything in your life which you’re unhappy about or could be better than it is now.

There are only two things which are guaranteed in life.

• The present moment

• Change

When I began to make an effort to become more present, my life changed.

It took me 27 years to figure it out. I began to appreciate everything in my life much more. The good, the bad, and the ugly. I accepted everything exactly as it was, without judgment. I became less self-critical and stopped negative self-talk when I didn’t do something as well as I could have.

One particular scenario in my life made me very aware of how much power living in the present had on my life.

In June, I was on a Greek island with my ex-girlfriend. I knew she would be breaking up with me soon. I knew she didn’t want to be with me anymore. At times, it felt like my world was falling apart. But when I sat and focused on being present, I became calm and realised nothing was wrong with the present moment. I was on a beach, the sun was shining, and I could run into the cool blue water whenever I wanted.

Realise nothing in life will ever be perfect.

You become extremely powerful if you’re able to live in the present.

And being present sounds like a simple thing.

But it’s very hard in today’s society where cheap dopamine and distractions creep up your back, sit on your shoulders, and pull your ears where they want you to go.

Live your life as best as you can today.

Be as present as you can.

If you were to die tomorrow, you wouldn’t spend your entire day on your phone.

You would spend time with the people you love.

You would spend as much time as you could in the real world.

When you wake up tomorrow and open your eyes, reflect on how lucky you are.

Repeat the same thing — and live like it’s your last 24 hours.

When you do this, you’ll begin to see that your life improves more than you ever thought possible.

ride the wave of the present or fall off

You must live in the present, launch yourself on every wave, and find your eternity in each moment – Henry David Thoreau

I’ve never been surfing, but maybe I should give it a shot.

The surfer needs to be present.

Each time the surfer paddles out into the deep water, he can never know exactly what’s coming. He can only be present. He can only react. He can only do his best to be in rhythm with the tide and the unpredictability of the water.

The surfer does his best to stand when it feels right.

If he gets distracted by the hot surfer girl waltzing along the sand, he falls.

Be the surfer.

Launch yourself on every wave and be as confident as you can as you jump up straight onto the board. The waves will knock you down. But at least you’ve been able to freshen up in the cool blue water.

Don’t treat the present moment as anything less than beautiful.

Life is a present — no matter how big or small the gift, be excited to open it.

Live now because there’s so much to live for.

When was a time you felt particularly unhappy with your life? How did you deal with it? And how are you feeling now?

Stefano

~