Experiencing Presence
There are some experiences in life that simply can’t be put into words. You have to live them to truly understand. Still, I’d like to share my perspective on “presence.”
Presence often begins by slowing down the chatter in your mind. You might not even realize it’s there until it stops—the constant worry, strategizing, and self-talk. As you learn to let these thoughts go, even briefly, you begin to stumble upon presence.
Once you catch a glimpse of this state, returning to the old mental noise just doesn’t seem worth it anymore. Thinking no longer rivals being fully here in the now. You might wobble back and forth at first—sometimes lost in thought, other times anchored in presence. But even a fleeting moment of presence can leave a lasting impression.
In those moments, you feel genuinely good. It can seem as if your body is absorbing energy, yet it’s also easy to forget you even have a body. Sometimes this can feel unsettling, which may pull you back into thought, but that’s perfectly okay. What matters is that you tasted the experience.
As you grow in presence, you learn how to navigate it—how to bring that peaceful state into everyday life more and more. You discover that letting go of incessant mental chatter opens up a new reality: a more forgiving world where you’re not perpetually on guard or consumed by what comes next.
Ultimately, presence offers a sense of freedom and grounding that words can only hint at. The best way to understand it, though, is to experience it for yourself.
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