Presence, the greatest gift

 “The most precious gift we can offer others is our presence. When mindfulness embraces those we love, they will bloom like flowers.”

What a beautiful sentiment by Thich Nhat Hanh. During this time of gifting, perhaps the greatest we can offer is our undivided attention. Not only to others but also to ourselves.  It seems as if time is flying by. Our attention and presence is being pulled away from the moment due to devices, deadlines or distractions.  Everyone is so very busy these days, present company included.

When there is excess motion in the mind and body it creates what is known in Ayurveda as a vata imbalance. This can lead to symptoms of anxiety, worry and a restless mind. Do any of those sound familiar? The remedy to excess motion is presence. Having the ability to be in the present moment. Not living in the past, worrying about the future, or having a constant narrative running through your thought process. The remedy is having the ability to be perfectly present. It sounds so simple right? Unfortunately because we are a society steeped in a Vata imbalance it is very hard for most of us to be presence.

Thich Nhat Hanh says that those we love will bloom when we give the gift of our presence. What if we gave the gift of presence to ourselves first? Carving some time everyday to incorporate the practice of presence. Allowing ourselves to bloom like flowers. As we do it will come much easier for us to be present with others.

One of the best ways to begin is through creating daily rituals to center your body and mind. In Ayurveda we call this dinacharya. Things that we do everyday to create support and a foundation to cultivate our practice of presence.