Seizing The Now: How To Reclaim The Present Moment

The clock ticks forward, not backward.

I’m a big believer in seeing things for what they really are. This means focusing on what’s real and in front of me at any given moment. Mindfulness is one of my keys to unlocking the present moment and consciously directing my attention to the here and now. 

Consider the face of a clock: With each tick, a new opportunity arises - an invitation to create a new thought, action, word or deed. There are 86,400 seconds in each day - that’s a lot of opportunities to let go of the past! 

When we focus on the present, and let go of past hurts, we can free up space for an incredible future. 

For me, the past feels like a story from another lifetime. I’ll go so far as to say the past is an illusionary concept, held up by the thoughts in our mind. It doesn’t exist in the here and now. 

What does exist is our point of power. 

When I was going through my healing crisis, my past trauma bubbled to the surface in a multitude of ways. Night terrors, PTSD, panic attacks - you name it I experienced it! I eventually recognised this process as my body needing to physically release the trauma. But did that stop it from being terrifying? Unfortunately not. 

I went through long periods of time where I barely slept because I knew what was waiting for me on the other side. A living nightmare and relentless battle against my own mind. Yet amidst this chaos, I discovered one of my biggest breakthroughs. 

The past cannot hurt me today. 

I had to reason with the fact that most of the haunting I was experiencing was occurring in my mind. It wasn’t in my reality.  

See what I mean about the illusion? 

My traumatic past, while frozen in time, was infiltrating and consuming my present. I was allowing something that no longer existed to dominate the precious gift of today. 

That’s when I knew I had to break free. 

I shifted my focus and began a journey toward the present. Whenever I felt the pull of the past, I challenged myself with 3 simple questions: 

What can I see at this moment? 

What can I hear at this moment? 

What can I feel at this moment?

You don’t have to be a trauma survivor to benefit from this technique. I encourage anyone who has trouble grounding in the present moment to give these a try. I invite you to release the grip of the past whenever it rears its head and focus on the richness of the present. We have every opportunity to recreate ourselves in this realm of unlimited possibility. It truly is a gift to be cherished.