Being present
Being present with family and friends is probably the most precious gift of all.
The holiday season is in full swing, and many of us are enjoying time with family and friends. Personally I find it a real challenge to unplug from my chaotic life to fully be with people that are important to me. Why is it that I seem to prioritize what I need to do ahead of my relationships? Maybe that sounds crazy. But goal-oriented thoughts seem to keep rushing through my head. What do I need to get done today? What is next on the agenda? Sometimes I feel like my life is one huge, endless “to do list” that I can’t possibly keep up with. And when I decide to stop and just be, I feel bored. I find myself looking around for something to do. Or I feel guilty for “wasting my time”. How crazy is that!! Clearly I need a huge attitude adjustment, and I need to take up meditation to stop being run ragged by my thoughts.
So, I’m writing this today as a reminder for myself to enjoy a break without pressuring myself to get all kinds of stuff done now that my day-job is on hold until the new year. To avoid reading my email and other work-related stuff, and if I use technology at all, to use it for stuff that is not work-related.
I want to still my run-on thoughts, relax and really be present with my family and friends this Christmas. I want to truly listen, and not be always immediately thinking of a response to what the other person is saying. I want the other person to feel heard. I want to ask questions rather than have all the answers. This may seem simple for many of you, but it won’t be for me. Getting good at being present and living in the now is an ongoing challenge. And hopefully as I focus on this over the next couple of weeks, it will be easier to stay present when I return to my life in the New Year.
Thank you all for letting me into your lives on Sunday mornings, and for listening to my various ramblings. I am most grateful to have such a kind, thoughtful and loyal readership. May your holiday season be peaceful and happy. And may you find your own way to be present.
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Joyt Schutt said,
December 20, 2010 @ 6:33 pm
Hi Vreni, I love and look forward to all your blog’s each week. I have learned so much thanks to you. I can especially relate to this entry on being present. I have decided to make being present everyday a New Year’s resolution and that’s saying something since I haven’t made one in many years.
Keep up the good work!
Joy
Sol said,
August 7, 2011 @ 1:18 pm
Thanks for the recent article on digestive issues. I recently spoke to my car mechanic, who has been a med pill popper for several years now, he has lots of prescriptions that he swallows daily for digestive problems. He recently began to drink dandelion tea and he claims that he’s now down to 1 or 2 pills that he takes only occasionally. He showed me a tea pot full of dark brown tea and said he’d be drinking all of it (diluted) by the end of that day. He also claims that he boils the entire plant – leaves, roots, and flower in order to make the tea. I wonder: have you done any research on dandelion tea by chance?