Living in the Sacred Now
You are right on time!
I’m already feeling behind, and it’s not even Thanksgiving yet. How are you doing?
I’m noticing that I frequently feel like I’m behind. Perhaps that feeling comes from measuring the wrong things.
I’m writing this to let you know that you are right on time. I’m writing this to clarify what I’m feeling on this point, too.
We are not behind.
There is only the sacred now.
Holy Wisdom delights in you right now, just as you are, and has since the beginning of time. That’s worth something!
Homemade Christmas cookies and perfectly wrapped gifts cannot increase the amount of delight Holy Wisdom already finds in you. There is nothing you can do to earn this delight. So, there is nothing you can do to lose it, either. That is part of being human, yours by virtue of having been created in the image and likeness of God.
Do you see that sacredness when you look at yourself in the mirror? Do you sense the sacredness of the present moments of your life?
There is where God is.
God meets you in the present holy moment.
Be in the sacred now.
So why do I feel behind?
There is another part of being human, one that is woven into our cultural mindset of scarcity: it is the relentless messaging that pulls us down into the pit of “not enough… time, money, creativity,….
Scarcity mindset is an old (and uninvited) friend of mine, one who makes frequent appearances. Scarcity mindset runs like a strong undercurrent contributing to my feeling behind. The feeling gets amped up at this time of year. The inner voices of do more, buy more, decorate more, are getting really loud. Anyone else feeling that?
I’m feeling behind because my schedule to redecorate all the rooms in my house was unrealistic and I’m already off track. I’ve repainted one room and it looks amazing, by the way! As I paused to celebrate and appreciate all the hard work, I had to bite my tongue to keep from asking “what’s next?”
I’m feeling behind because my garden beds are a mess with so many plants needing to be cut back and fertilized. Honestly, I have zero motivation to attend to that task.
I’m feeling behind because I haven’t moved a paint brush on either of my painting series for quite some time. I’ve been sketching up a storm practicing figures and the drape of fabric, but somehow that doesn’t seem to count.
How am I counting?
How am I measuring a “successful” life?
What does success even look like?
Am I measuring the wrong things?
Defining Success
I noticed that I was resisting using the word “success” when I was trying to describe this feeling because that word is strongly tied to productivity and hustle culture.
The etymology of “success” comes from the Latin sub- (“next to”) + cēdō (“go, move”). It’s been defined as “to go near.” This cryptic definition allows you to fill in the blanks: to go near what? And why do you want to go near?
Too frequently, we automatically internalize the measure of success that other people have handed us. We use external validation to measure success, or rely on metrics that are outside of our control. But when you pause and consider what it is you want to go near, and why you want to go there, you can more intentionally choose what aligns with your soul. You can choose what brings you more alive.
Another thought that comes up when I’m feeling behind is realizing that I’m focusing on the future, perhaps a goal I want to achieve. Or, I may feel behind because I’m focusing on other peoples’ lives, comparing my life to theirs. When my eyes drift out of my lane, I start to feel my life’s energy leaking out, energy that I need to bring myself fully alive.
The antidote to feeling behind is to live in the present moment.
Be here now and fully embrace the gift of this moment.
What is touching your skin right now?
What information are your senses receiving in this moment?
Where is your intuition nudging you?
Live in the sacred now.
Not in the past - you can’t go back there. Not in the future, that hasn’t yet arrived. Zen teacher Thich Nhat Hanh reminds us that
When we are caught in our worries and anger, or in the past or the future, … then we’re not here. We’re not alive.
It’s not too late. You can’t be late. Actually, you are right on time because there is only now. The concept of being late or feeling behind requires you to see time as a linear march moving only forward.
By staying in the present moment, time feels like it expands. You can experience time expanding when you are in the flow state. I’ve written about the joy of being fully absorbed by the task in front of me so much that I lose track of time. In the flow state, your mind isn’t sidetracked by whatever happened yesterday; it’s not worrying about what will happen tomorrow. You are fully engaged in the present moment in all its richness and complexity. You are fully alive.
According to psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, the seminal researcher, the state of flow optimizes your lived experiences:
People who learn to control inner experience will be able to determine the quality of their lives, which is as close as any of us can come to being happy.
So by way of summary:
Wisdom, the female face of God thinks you are a delight and always has! See Proverbs 8.
Redefine how you measure success by intentionally choosing what you want to ‘go near.’
Live your life fully optimized by engaging in the present moment, by living in the sacred now.
You are a delight!
You are not behind.
You are right on time!
PS: I told you that you are a delight. That was the last thing my mom told me. It comes from a very special place in my heart and hopefully lands in a deep place in yours!
PPS: If you are yearning for a slower, softer Winter Solstice in the midst of the holiday fever, join us for the next session of CREATIVE RESISTANCE on Saturday, December 13th at 11:00 eastern. Join the Creative Resistance