I’ve arrived

In my whole life I’ve been someone with loads of ideas to do, plans, dreams. A day is never enough, there are so many great things to do (and also so many tasks that just need to be done). I tried a lot of different sports when I was young, from gymnastics through basketball to salsa dancing, learned to play different music instruments (and if it was up to me I would have learned 10 more), and I was always gone somewhere with a friend. Still now, every single day I have more ideas to do then what the day allows. 

There are some moments, however, when I feel I’ve arrived. When I’m on my mat, either in a class or on my own, I have that sensation of coming to where I need to come. When I give a hug to one of my children (particularly when they are in a more quiet mode, like early in the morning or in the evening before bedtime:), it gives an intense sensation that this is exactly where I need to be. In that moment my thoughts about all my to-dos just drop and vanish. 

Recently I started paying attention to this sensation of arrival, and to build it into my day consciously. And it’s amazing. When I do this, I come to a pause, and just think that this is exactly where I need to be now, and this is exactly what I need to be doing. I’ve done all I had to do to be able to be here: with my child, who is here laughing and playing next to me as a blessing. I feel I’ve arrived when I finally sit down on the sofa, listening to music. I am conscious of having arrived when I get on my mat to do my yoga practice, meeting with my body in the here and now. 

Earlier I was of course also spending time with my family and with my yoga practice, but it took me a longer time to be really present, because my mind was still busy with its plans: what’s next? Telling myself “I’ve arrived” in the here and now allows me to be present straight away and turn down that loud voice of my monkey-mind. I noticed that cultivating this sensation of arrival grounds me, allows me to pause from floating around all the time. And because it is so re-balancing, it gives a sense of relaxation and relief. 

If you are the type like me, floating around with loads of ideas and and often catching your mind to be in the future rather than in the now, perhaps you might like to experiment with this, too. The concept is so simple, just notice those moments which matter to you, those when you’d like to be genuinely present, and tell yourself you’ve arrived, you are in the here and now. And just feel what happens next.