My word for this year of 2021 is PRESENCE. I am starting to explore this concept. How can I be aware of the immediate? How can I love in “the now”? When things are in chaos around me, such as what happened in our nation’s capital this week, how can I remain present to what I am called to do and be in this moment?
The past is there. It has come and gone. There are memories. And there is nothing I can do to change those memories. Past moments are out of my control. Therefore, I don’t need to dwell in the past. I can remember and be thankful. I can look back and learn, but the past is not where I live.
The future is coming, but it is unknown. I can plan, but things may not turn out as I plan. I can look forward to what lies ahead, but it is out of my control. There is no actual knowing of what the future holds. Therefore, I cannot dwell in the future.
The only choice I have left is to reside in the present. I have this time and this place in which to act and in which to be. This “now” is what I can embrace and welcome and love. It is the only thing I have any control over. What can I do right now? What part am I meant to play right here? Who am I going to be during this minute? How can I more fully engage with this moment? How can I be more fully present to the people that are standing next to me? How can I live out of my best and truest self with the resources I have around me currently? This is where I need to remain. Paying attention to the immediate. Finding joy and beauty in the present. Loving the nearest. Living fully now.
This prayer from Teresa of Ávila speaks to me:
Let nothing disturb you.
Let nothing upset you.
Everything changes.
God alone is unchanging.
With patience all things are possible.
Whoever has God lacks nothing.
God alone is enough.
Life can be upsetting. When I watched the news on Wednesday, so much was disturbing: an attempted overthrow of our political system, a leader calling on followers to disrupt, police showing preference for white protests over black, people carrying their political beliefs too far. Yet, if I focus on the present, my mind can keep what is happening in perspective and I can center myself on actions I can take here and now. I’ve let go of the past. I’m not looking to the future. I can remember that all things will change. Things fade away. Bad things don’t last forever. Good things come and go. What is the only thing I can cling to? The now. God in the now. God doesn’t change. I can have patience with this moment because God is a steadying force of Love in and through it. I can cling to God: a rock, an anchor, a rope to hold onto as we make our way through a blizzard. Even if things fall apart all around me, even if I can’t see anything else because of the snow swirling around me and blinding my vision, God is still here as my rope, the One who is with me and leading me in this moment. God is enough.
Another story came to mind as I was thinking about this topic of being Present. It is Leo Tolstoy’s short story called The Three Questions. In it, a king is asking is asking three questions: When is the best time to do things? Who is the most important person? What is the right thing to do? A hermit finally shows the king the answers. The best time to always do things is now. The most important person is the one you are with. And the right thing is to do good to the person who is standing by your side.
This is my focus for this year: to do good now for the person who is standing by my side. When I remain present to this goal, I will be remaining present to my true self, I will be remaining present to those immediately around me, and I will be remaining present to God.
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