It was December 2002, when I first picked up the book, The Power of Now. It was a gift to my mother, along with a new bathrobe and pair of slippers for Christmas that year. It was not even two months later, on Feb 14th, 2003, that my mother went into the hospital for a headache. We would find out days later after, as she underwent surgery, that she had malignant brain tumor: Glioblastoma multiforme level 4. (The most aggressive type of cancerous brain tumor.) Doctors told me, “She might only have a few 6 months left.”
Looking back, I realize now how prophetic the Christmas gift was that I had given her. Taking care of my mother for the next year and a half was definitely one of the most enlightening experiences I have ever had. Witnessing her spiritual awakening, and crossing over into the next reality as her earth suit failed her, was just the beginning of my own awakening to living in the present moment and what that truly means.
I would lie in my mother’s hospital bed with her, reading the Power of Now. I remember understanding and accepting the concepts and ideas in the book, all the while being in a state of emotional shock. Given the life-changing and challenging circumstances we were facing, I felt catapulted into living in the present moment: I was definitely holding on for her to live, but I was also enjoying every hug, laugh and tear as a precious moment.
As I sit here sharing my life experience with you, I have a whole new appreciation and friendliness with living in the present moment. I now see the present moment as the access point for being powerful and experiencing true peace. When we become present, we become aware of our ego and through this awareness, can access our “I AM presence.”
See, something happens. The human condition (Our Ego) then makes what happened to us mean something. The human condition (Our Ego) begins to identify more and more with the story, and the meaning it has made up about what happened. The human condition (Our Ego) eventually believes this is who it is. (Example: Identity from the story: “I was abused, I was hurt, I was not worthy, or, I was not good enough.”)
Push the repeat button for a lifetime of a recycled experience of suffering. I realize this is the condensed version but I hope it “bottom-lines” and simplifies the collective human condition for you enough, to BEWARE and BECOME AWARE!
As I am walking up into the Hollywood Hills of Griffith Park today, I AM focused on my breath and taking in the natural beauty of nature all around me moment by moment. I appreciate the beautifully constructed homes I pass by. Some of them look as if they had just recently had a face-lift, an addition, or remodel done to them. It isn’t until I come across a home that had been completely gutted, with only its original frame intact, that I become intrigued.
I want to go inspect further, so I walk along the property line into the backyard, where an old pool, a decorative stone fountain, and patio area, shape a once inviting hideaway of a backyard. Now, however, there is only a skeleton of the home’s structure to protect this once private space, from the street.
I take a seat on an old stone bench and appreciate the sunlight dancing its sparkling dance on me in the midst of only the framework of this home. It is at this moment that I see a beautiful metaphor about BEING in the moment.
Even this house, in this very moment, has a past that could define it. It is in Los Angeles California, it is a smaller lot, with a fenced-in backyard. You can see the framework of the house follow somewhat of an original floor plan with three bedrooms, two bathrooms, and a double car garage layout. It has, what I think is, an inviting backyard.
There are definitely some basics that constructed the constitution of this home, but what truly excites me, is the blank slate that is available – the vast potential of possibilities that are within the space of this framework.
What is it that gives the extra potential or possibility? There is nothing here. NO THINGS to define what it is going to be, other then the original framework.
We too are the frameworks of our “homes”; our lives. I am a young woman, and within this body, this life, there are definite structures that make up my framework. Yet, when I AM in the now, there is a space for power and potential that is vast and magnificent.
When we clear away the walls, the wallpaper, the lights, the furniture, THE STORIES, the past, and the recycled future from our lives, we are then left with nothing but our unique framework, and a home we can rebuild, remodel and redecorate with infinite possibility.
Today I am the framework of my home, my life, with only the light pouring down on me: Mighty I AM presence.
Photo Source: http://brunettebardot.blogspot.com