Be Present.

As I am sitting here on the treatment table in Vancouver, Canada I am pondering what my first official blog for my new website should be about.  In between winces of pain and muscle spasms due to the IMS I am receiving to help relieve my extremely sore muscles, thoughts come into my head.  No pain, no gain is an obvious choice of topic as another needle is pressed into my hip flexor only to be jiggled around then taken out. A sigh of relief rushes through my body.  I take a deep breath, feel my entire body sink into the table, and I reach down to put my IPad on the side table…

It was in that moment, lying on that table with aching muscles, needles being poked around on my legs, a tv on in the background, and myself attempting to write my blog that it came to me. I wouldn’t call this a New Years Resolution, more of a lifestyle change.  I decided to be present.  Be present in all that was happening.  Be present in that room, on that table.  Be present in that twenty-minute treatment session. Be present in my life. This is something I feel has been completely taken away from most of us with all the distractions around us. It’s far to easy to reach into your pocket and aimlessly scroll through Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or even play a round of Candy Crush as soon as the room goes silent or we feel a sense of “boredom”.  It’s something that has become a habit, something we do, and I am including myself in this, without even thinking about it.  It’s an easy way out of that awkward conversation with someone you barely know, or that moment you realize you’re the only one in the group not on your phone, or when all of a sudden the conversation veers in a direction you don’t feel a part of. It’s also, as we may tend to not realize, sending a very clear signal to most people around you, that your phone is more important in that moment than your conversation with them. It’s sending a signal that in those vulnerable moments when we are left alone, we choose to escape, and not to embrace.  We crave the sense of connection, it’s human, but why not connect with what is happening here and now, and not through how many “likes” our Instagram/Facebook photo gets or number of retweets on Twitter we have.

I have set out a challenge for myself, an ongoing journey of self-discovery.  I want to be vulnerable, and I want to be present in the moment, where I am. I know there is a time and place to be calling, texting, checking social media, and playing games. But there is also a time and place to enjoy the people your with, to embrace the silence and alone time, to get to know that acquaintance just a little bit more.  From now on, meals are off limits for my phone and I. I will part ways with my beloved cell, and choose to be present in what I am eating, and who I am with, whether I am alone, with one person or with a group.  It’s a no brainer for me.  Be present.  Next on the list is when I am with one other person.  I won’t send them the clear sign that I would rather be on my phone than talk with them.  I have been in the situation time and time again where I am sitting with a friend who is sitting on his or her phone, and I know exactly what it feels and looks like, and I will challenge myself to not put anyone else in that situation again. Be present.  Lastly, I will enjoy the moments of aloneness. I will be present. Whether it’s to people watch, make a new acquaintance, or just simply be grateful for where I am and what I am doing.  Through these I truly believe that I will create stronger bonds with those around me, I will be more grateful for what I have in front of me, and I will learn to be vulnerable, and be ok with that.  To be ok with the uncomfortable, because it’s when we live in the uncomfortable that great things happen.