Begin Here. Begin Again.
Be Present. Be in the moment. Stop to smell the roses. Pay attention. “They” all say this. But what does it really mean, anyway?
Depending on what I am reading, or who I’m listening to, or what is going on in my life, it might have a different meaning or a different emphasis on a particular day.
Right now, to me, it means:
Begin here.
Do not dwell in the past. Do not linger on the wrongs you did, or the crap someone did to you yesterday (or a year ago). Begin here. Now. Where you are.
Begin again.
Each day is a new chance. Each hour is a new opportunity. Each breath is a new moment to define who we are and who we aren’t.
During a meditation, then in a book, and next in a yoga class, this idea kept coming to me the other day. Within a series of hours, I heard the message:
Begin again.
It was a reminder — not that I’d messed up and needed to start over. But a reminder that life is a practice. There is no moment in which we can claim we are complete. We are not working toward a goal, even though it may feel like it. As soon as you reach a peak in your life, everything changes.
Life is not linear. Life is practice.
It is not the performance. It is not the race. It is not the presentation. Life is the mundane and the ordinary. It is everything that happens as we prepare for what comes next. That is where the beauty lies.
The most important day is today.
And each day is an opportunity to begin again. To relax about the unchecked items on our to-do list. To let go of the regret for the extra slice of pizza last night. To forgive our friend for the harsh words she said. To give our family member another shot.
Each day is an opportunity to meet ourselves with love.
We don’t have to carry the perceived failures from yesterday. We can’t rest on our victories either.
With each breath… each hour… each day….
Begin here. Begin again.
Wishing you a few moments of clarity in your day,
