Being Present to Your Own Life

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The simplicity of presence is one of the main things that keep us from attaining it more regularly. We may try to be present, and either not notice that it has occurred, or if we do, then fail to notice when it has slipped away. It takes time and effort to see that being present to our life is more important than the passage of events in our life.

Simple does not mean easy. The notion that being in "the now" has something to do with "going with the flow" and passing from experience to experience in a passive state of mind does not lead to presence. There is no such thing as "going with the flow"; there is no conscious flow. We are present for brief durations each time we make an intentional effort to be present. When presence recedes we must again make an intentional effort. Without effort, presence will not remain.