The Art of Being—How to Be Present in the Moment

I had spent the night at a relative’s house who lived near the beach. The next morning I was sitting out on the patio by myself. It was a sunny day with an ocean breeze, and I sat there gazing out across the coastal landscape to the crystal blue ocean about a mile or so away. I didn’t have anywhere to go or anything to do. It was peaceful, and it felt good just being there in that moment. Without necessarily having to go into a meditation, just being there with myself, tuning into my inner world while still being aware of the outer world, created a stillness in my mind. I simply sat there with the sun, the warmth, the peace.

That is how the Art of Being (the term that came to me from that experience) was anchored into me. It was a combination of being in the moment + being grateful for my experience. Being grateful for the sun on my skin, the beauty of my surroundings, the tranquil feelings running through my body in that moment.

I had read books about being in the moment and heard people talk about it, but the words had an unfamiliarity to them that was hard to connect with. People talk about the concept of being in the moment, but do not always include the details, like the feelings associated with it, and it always sounded like work, something that I needed to focus on or put effort in to. The Art of Being I found, was just the opposite of trying, or focusing.

Another way I can describe it, that you can try for yourself, is to imagine in this very moment letting go of everything. You are not trying to hold on to anything or attain anything. Imagine all your thoughts, worries, concerns, any heavy energy you feel around you, all being sucked away from you by a strong magnetic pull. What you’re left with is just your being, and your presence in this moment. That is what the Art of Being feels like. I simply needed to experience it for myself in a way that resonated with me.

For me it felt like the me inside me, my inner self, or energetic soul self was relaxing. From my perspective, I imagine it as my subtle energy body within my physical body (with the same shape as my physical body) relaxing and just sensing the world around me. I like to imagine my subtle energy body as a medium shade of blue, but yours could be different. It really sank in that day and I’m grateful, because that feeling I felt is what I consider an attunement. Meaning, after having experienced it I can go back to that feeling because I know what it felt like. I think of the concept as being similar to the idea of a dial on a radio tuning to the particular station I am looking for. The Art of Being is a great way to quickly become relaxed, and to be in the moment. It is a way to be in the present time, while being connected to all that is.