Return to Presence

I listened to a short video by Elizabeth Gilbert today. In it she described a really easy exercise that can help you

Return to Presence.

She called the exercise “5-4-3-2-1” and it’s super simple to do. Simply stop and name

• 5 things you can see
• 4 things you can hear
• 3 things you can feel
• 2 things you can smell
• 1 thing you can taste

I ready myself to try this exercise, take a deep breath and look around.

I see…

• my hands on my computer keyboard
• my neighbor across the street raking up leaves in her front yard
• a blue sky with some pretty white clouds floating by
• bird feeders swaying in the breeze
• an angel card propped up on my desk

I hear…

• the click of my fingers on my keyboard
• a plane flying overhead
• the quiet of my office as I pause and listen
• the wheels of my chair on the chair mat as I scoot my chair back

I feel…

• the warmth of my fleece jacket on my arms and upper body
• my toes press down onto the chair mat below my feet
• my butt balancing on my exercise ball chair

I smell…

• the scent of my cup of warm ginger tea beside me
• the clean air of this fresh new breath I am taking

I taste…

• a bit of honey and ginger from my last sip of ginger tea

Out of my head, into the moment

Hmmm…she’s right this does take me out of my head and into the present moment quickly and easily. I don’t know about you but I needed these few moments of presence to let go of everything that is happening in the world around me. It’s easy to get caught up in what if’s and isn’t it terrible. 

I can feel my sorrow that yet another war has begun. And feel deeply for everyone who is suffering. Yet I can also center myself in this moment and feel love and light.

Look outside — do you see the sunlight? Isn’t that astonishing? Can you feel the breeze through the window? Are your teeth brushed? Do you see the people walking in the city outside, taking care of their lives, going from place to place? In this actual moment, do those people you see outside on the sidewalk need you? Or are they somehow miraculously managing to convey themselves about their business without your assistance or interference? Incredible, isn’t it?

My love, my love, in this moment, nothing needs you. Nobody needs you but YOU — so turn your attention in this moment toward allowing love to permeate your frightened imagination. You have heard me many times in meditation reminding you to let life take care of life, to let the world turn on its own power. Pause here, and observe how everything is working.

There was a world here long, long before you arrived, little soldier with your little mind, and there will be a world long after you go. And there are more worlds than this one, seen and unseen. And love was here before you were born, and love is what you will return to when you’re done with this body. Please don’t believe the stories your mind tells you, dearest. They are tales of imagined dragons told around a campfire that does not even exist. Be here with me, my love. Stay present to reality. And the reality is that I love you. Have a gentle day.

   — Elizabeth Gilbert, Letters from Love

Wishing you a beautiful week ahead lovlies.

May you walk in beauty.

Note: Photos from Jay Cooke State Park last week.