Being
Present—It’s All GOOD
By
Lori Flynn
“And
the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the
risk it took to blossom.” ~Anais Nin
I
teach yoga. As a yoga teacher, it is my passion to guide people into the
present moment, help them watch their thoughts and start to feel and sense
rather than spend so much time “thinking.”
The
meditation and movement work we do in a 75-minute class, over time, begins to
find its way into the lives of students in the world outside of the yoga
studio. It is through this work that we begin to notice the “ruts” our
thoughts create in our lives and the automatic responses that follow certain
triggers.
At
first, this can be frightening for people. Many people approach yoga as a
strictly physical practice. When I lead a meditation at the beginning of class
I can almost hear the mind chatter of students. Once it begins to die down,
there is a calmness that takes over the room—followed quickly by a panic of
sorts: eyes suddenly opening, nervous glancing around the room, hair fixing and
outfit manipulations.
After
a few classes, though, a new student begins to settle quickly into the
meditation and remains calm for the 8-10 minute period of stillness. Week after
week, students return, their small talk at the beginning of class evolving from
“Hi. How are you? I am fine,” to “I’ve had some major shifts in my life in the
way that I’ve been dealing with stress at my job.”
When
we start any practice centered around the concept of watching the mind, a new
world opens to us. We first are met with the concept of what is commonly
referred to as the “witness consciousness.”
As
soon as we notice we are “watching our thoughts,” we are faced with the
question of WHO is watching. Am I not
my thoughts? If not, what ARE these
things?
It
is our minds’ duties to create stories and assist us in making sense of the
world. Once we start to tune in to that process, the new territory can be both
thrilling and scary. We are creatures of habit and can be extremely attached to
our coping mechanisms, crutches, addictions and behaviors. Without taking the
time to sit with ourselves for even a few minutes a day, these deep ruts can
actually nurture behaviors that are no longer serving us. This is what drives
us crazy.
When
we learn to be present with our thoughts, we can start to look at the way we
integrate experience into our lives. If we are not seeing the results that make
us feel safe, secure and valued, we can pinpoint a reaction to our thought
stream that is no longer serving us.
Then,
we can start to experiment with new ways of “being” in our own lives. The good
news is that because what we’ve been doing up until now isn’t working for us
anymore, we get to try any number of approaches that just might. The ‘not so
good at first’ news is that it is scary. Changing life-long habits requires
stepping out of a comfort zone. But
think about it—is it really that comfy if we’re seeking a way out? Probably
not.
We
live in a busy world of reactive decision-making. Remember to take time for
yourself throughout the day to simply take a deep breath and stop for a minute.
You really don’t need any formal guidance to simply sit, tune in to your own
thoughts and bring yourself into the present moment.
If
you want to explore and go deeper, then certainly shop around for a teacher and
practice that resonates with you. Either way, giving yourself the gift of
knowing yourself and integrating daily experience into your personal
evolutionary path is one of the best things you can do for your physical,
emotional and spiritual health.
Have
fun!
