A Moment Like This

Today was another amazing hike in the gorge.  The kind that makes one realizes that all the self-help books are right when they say “live in the moment”. Now of course there are better moments than others.  Sitting listening to the rushing water beats the hell out of the moments of climbing when the sweat is coming so fast you would leave a puddle if you stop moving, waking slowly to the sound of birds and the gentle light of dawn is nicer than the jar of an alarm clock and holding the love of your life is a sweeter moment than missing them. Yes, some moments are definitely better than others and yet each moment is part of the creation of our life.

So being in the present moment and thinking about the idea of living in the moment sent me to Google define to see what a moment really is. Wikipedia gives this definition: A moment, in context with time, is an indefinitely short period of time. Sometimes defined as zero seconds long, but perhaps better defined as an infinitesimal part of a second or minute, hour, day, etc.

One of my favorite quotes around the concept of a moment is: “It is not the amount of breaths you take but the moments that take your breath away.” I do not know who to give credit to on this one yet I love it and relish those moments that take my breath away.

I have a Kanji tattoo on the inside of my right forearm that is about living all my moments. It translates to “With the first breath is the beginning of death” and if that is not a reminder to live each moment, then what is?

Many other great teachers, much wiser than I am, have talked and written about the “moment concept” so I have included their wisdom here:

From and earlier blog that I wrote comes one of D’s rulz around the idea of a moment. “There are no bad days, only moments, let them go.“

“Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment.” Buddha

“The ability to be in the present moment is a major component of mental wellness.” Abraham Maslow
““The point of power is always in the present moment.” Louise Hay

A Moment Like This is a wonderful love song, about “that moment” when clarity hits and love is realized. A line from it states “some people wait a lifetime for a moment like this.” Artist, Leona does a wonderful job singing this.

So what causes us to relive the past or forecast the future and miss the present moment that never comes again? Well, sometimes memories and fantasies along with everyday life and the stress that we sometimes feel. There is hope though for the last part of that. Many disciplines abound that teach a form of moving or still meditation to learn to appreciate the moment, the single breath. Yoga, Tai Chi and others can help us learn to the focus on the moment.

The choice, of course, is yours in how you treat your present moments. I hope you don’t choose to “wait a lifetime for a moment like this” but start to appreciate them all now for the bliss or the lessons. I think for now I will be mindful of my next breath and the one after that and then the next. I have clear intention to live each moment fully because the opposite would be to not live at all so I will follow the advise of Dr. Wayne Dyer when he says, “You’ll seldom experience regret for anything that you’ve done. It is what you haven’t done that will torment you. The message therefore is clear. Do it! Develop an appreciation for the present moment. Seize every second of your life and savor it. Value your present moments.  Using them in any self-defeating way means you’ve lost them forever.”

Thank you for spending these moments with me.