May 15, 2013

Living in the now


The short lived beauty of the Cherry blossom

INNER BEAUTY
Many of us try to live in the now. I say try to. Living in the now is an art form. Needing to be cultivated though. The mega success book that explains it all is the classic The Power of Now by Oprah's favourite author Eckhart Tolle. Although the book is really great, it can sometimes get a bit lengthy. However, the essence is something to think about. I find having a-living-in-the-now-mindset particularly helpful to keep me from worrying (too much) about the future or not getting too nostalgic looking back on life. Also, life passes by so quickly (just have a look at your kids), I don´t want to get old having spent this time of life "somewhere else". So, here and now today. Here are some quick words about the importance and beauty of living in the now, and not missing the reality of life, as Eckhart Tolle recently told Postively Positive:      

"The answer lies within rather than in obtaining more possessions, or achieving this or that, or changing the world out there. It´s a transitional stage from the normal state of consciousness, where all the solutions and problems are seen as external, to realizing that whatever we experience as our external reality is a reflection of our inner state of consciousness. The old mind pattern—the deeply ingrained pattern that always looks to the future for fulfillment and salvation—still tends to operate. This mind pattern assumes that the future is going to be more important than the present. It ignores the present moment, does not honour it, and does not give it its due. The future does not exist, because nobody has ever experienced it. You can only ever experience a present moment. The future is a mental projection that you are having in the present moment. I’m not talking about the practical aspects of the future, like booking a flight or planning what you want to do this year, but the psychological future. That’s where we can get trapped. If you are always focused on the future, you miss the reality of life, which is the present moment."