I’ve been thinking a lot about the power of the present moment, and living fully present, especially since recently reading The Power of Now, by Eckhart Tolle. (I use affiliate links for books. I appreciate your support.)
And then that was immediately put to the test this week as I began the process of potty training our youngest son. In the past, whenever I was potty training, I inevitably spent my days wishing I was somewhere else. This time around I set my intention to embrace the experience and live in the present moment, asking what lesson it held for me.
What I found this week while focused on being present in the moment with my precious son, as I sought to see the lesson to be learned, I realized that the experience itself was helping to teach me how to be present.
Ever since I began to awaken to a new level of spiritual reality a few years ago, and began the process of renewing my mind, and aligning with my soul, and such, I realized early on that being present and patient was quite difficult for me. I have always been a planner, a forward-thinking, detail-oriented, responsible, future-focused individual.
Now I’m learning to change my perspective, to rewrite the rules, to enjoy the journey in an entirely new way.
On the one hand, watching myself potty train our youngest is showing me how far I’ve come, that I have changed so much, and for the better, in my pursuit of my better self and a better way of life and service.
On the other hand, it’s still incredibly hard for me to just sit for hours and play duplos and watch Team Umizoomi and Story Bots. But as I practice witnessing myself from the vantage point outside myself (in alignment with the pov of my soul), and I set my intention to find the lessons and learn them, and gently insist to myself that I relax into the present moment, I shift into a wonderful new state of mind.
I allow myself to rejoice in my son’s life, to enjoy his joyful, innocent and enthusiastic presence. I relax, and sit, and soak into the moment. I play duplos and snuggle and do the potty routine 2-3x an hour. And I realize at some point that my son is teaching me to be present.
When I release my judgment (of him, of myself, of our routine, of the situation – there are many options in both parenthood and potty training) and focus on being present in the moment, I see him as he is, I see myself as I am, and I am able to focus on loving him and being present.
And my soul itself is soothed by this process. I find a state not unlike that I find in meditation at times, where the outer world and the inner chatter fall away, and you are able to simply focus on something simple that fills you with joy and gratitude, just for the simplicity and complexity of this gift called life.
My challenge to you today and this week is to consider what mundane or tedious life circumstances might have a lesson for you, and to practice being fully present in the moment in those parts of your life. Look for where you have resistance to your life and ask yourself what it would look like to accept those parts. Relax into the experience and invite spirit to speak to you as you allow the moment to be what it is, without trying to make it something different.
It’s important to remember that we can apply spiritual principles to anything. This journey is all about finding your true self, about finding a new and better way to be you. This means what you are learning can be applied to what might seem to be the most boring or ‘non-special’ parts of our lives. Practice inviting spirit into every part of your daily life; expect miraculous shifts and you will find them.
Alicia Eichmann