The first time I received a massage, I was in heaven for about 30 seconds.
The remaining 59 mins and 30 seconds were spent knowing the clock was ticking down and the massage would be over soon.
With each moment that passed I remember wishing it could last longer, but struggling to fully receive what was actually happening in real time.
I went thru the motions of a massage, but I didn’t fully experience it; I wasn’t able to have it.
How have you witnessed this in someone else? Where have you experienced something like this in your own life?
Just the other day, my daughter and I were eating lunch. I made Beef Ragu for the first time and she LOVED it. She said, mid-bite, "Mom, you should make this more often!" I received this sweet compliment, and made a mental note to add the dish to our rotation. But her words lingered in my mind for another reason: although seemingly benign, it represented the common practice of speeding past this moment into a future time that doesn't even exist yet.
What if, instead of fixating on the future,
we allow ourselves to be fully available to the present?
We can only live in the present moment. If we aren’t present and able to experience what is happening now, we won’t be able to fully live or have what we desire. We will be constantly searching for the thing or person that will make us feel complete, whole, satisfied…and we will never find it.
The notion of having may feel kind of abstract, but it is an embodied experience of all the good stuff we think about and desire to actually have in life {like balance, joy, plenty, love, clarity, freedom, wholeness, connection}.
The art of having is finding presence, satisfaction and the capacity to be with whatever the moment presents.
Three Ways to be in the Practice of Having:
1. Use Your Senses: What do you see, hear, taste, touch, smell and sense in this moment? Drop down from your logical thinking brain, into your body. Take a moment to move through each sense and allow yourself to really see, hear, taste, touch, smell and sense.
2. Do Something Different: When energy gets stagnant, we find ourselves feeling stuck, repeating patterns that aren't life-giving, or feeling generally dissatisfied with life. Stagnant energy can be there for lots of different reasons, which we don't even necessarily need to understand. To get to the other side, where we have the life-experience we most desire, all we need to do is something different. If you are sitting, stand up. If you are moving, sit down. If you are annoyed, ask Alexa to tell you a funny joke. If you are trying to make something work and you have tried 15 times, put it away.
3. Let Go: Sounds counter-intuitive to "let go" if you want to practice having, I know. But trust me on this one. If you are gripping, grabbing, pulling, hanging on, or even just gently holding, chances are there is a sliver of fear you will loose whatever it is. If we experience any level of fear, we are already out of the present moment. Practice having by noticing when you are gripping, grabbing, pulling, etc. and consciously relax your energy back to a place where you are simply with.
When we cultivate embodied living and our ability to have, we rest into the peace and plenty that is already and always available...not just for us, but for our world.
With love for you and this NOW moment we are sharing. Thank you for meeting me here! Rachel
Rachel Sartori is an Embodiment and Wholeness Coach. She is kick-ass and heart-centered whether she is showing up as a workshop/retreat facilitator, a private coach, a writer or a speaker. Rachel invites you to exercise your soul, and participate in the healing of your own heart and the world around you. With Rachel, all is welcome, all the time.
Read: Exercise Your Soul: Ignite Healing and Wholeness in your Life and Live from the Inside Out
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