Today, as I write to you, I want to reflect upon a simple phrase that has stayed with me ever since I came across it a few weeks ago.
This is as much a reflection process for me as it is a clarification on how to be a better practitioner of life. Yes, I believe that as long as we are alive, knowingly or unknowingly, we are all practitioners of life.
Some are better at it, some are learning, and some of us are trying to improve. In practising life, we hope to practice love, understanding, discipline, compassion, and so on, so that we can be better at living.
But so often, what happens is that we leave this practice for later.
We tell ourselves, “Tomorrow I will be more disciplined. Tomorrow I will be more loving, stronger, more understanding, more determined…”
We think: “When I get there, when I become that, when I finally have this… then life will truly begin.”
We imagine that in the future we will somehow have more time, more energy, and more capacity to live the life we dream of. But in doing so, we keep postponing life.
We postpone our happiness, our disciplined self, our loving self, our energetic self, and our imagined self.
So when I came across the simple phrase, it struck me immediately.
The phrase is, ‘This is It’.
It brought me back to the present moment, to today, and to the realisation of how life is now.
Not tomorrow, not next week, not next month or sometime in future, but now, this moment, ‘this is it’
‘This’ moment, no matter how ordinary or challenging, is the practice ground for who we want to be and how we want to live.
Life is not something separate from us. Life is now. Life is this day, this breath, these fleeting seconds. A collection of these present moments is what we end up calling life.
The present is the mother of our future. What we do now shapes what our future will look like. The future is simply the harvest of the seeds we sow now.
So, we need not be overly concerned about how we will live in the future. What should concern us is how we live today, because ‘this is it’.
And however this moment may be, ‘this is it’
This exact moment of fleeting seconds is all that we have to ever deal with.
I think this also immediately makes our problems seem less big than we may make them seem, because no matter what we might be going through, all we ever have to deal with is ‘this moment’.
However, the practice of “this is it” doesn’t mean pretending everything is easy or forcing positivity, but is more about accepting what is, instead of wishing how things should be or could be.
It’s about gently reminding yourself, even in difficulty: this too is life.
- When heartbreak aches- pause and breathe: this is it, this is part of my becoming.
- When plans fall apart- whisper: this is it, the path is unfolding differently.
- When anxiety rises, place your hand on your chest: this is it, and I am still breathing fine.
- When loneliness visits, sit with it softly: this is it, and I am still here.
When your heart calls out for something, whether it is practising yoga, joining a dance class, writing your book, making music, studying, or working on your dream project- notice the urge to wait for the “right time.” Then don’t listen to it, and say: This is it.
Bronnie Ware, an Australian nurse, captured this beautifully in her work with dying patients.
When she was taking care of dying patients, she asked them about “regrets they had or anything they would do differently.”
Later, she turned it into a blog entry: “The Regrets of the Dying.”
In it, the five themes that commonly surfaced were:
- I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.
- I wish I hadn’t worked so hard.
- I wish I’d had the courage to express my feelings.
- I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends.
- I wish that I had let myself be happier.
So this is a reminder for me and you that this is the only time we ever get to practice.
This is the only day we ever get to do what we want to do.
Stop postponing life. Let there be no regrets.
And at other small moments in daily life, here are ways to gently anchor yourself in “this is it” throughout your day:
- Morning light: When you first open your eyes, notice the light in your room, be grateful for brand-new 24 hours filled in your pocket of life and whisper: this is it. This is your practice ground.
- Commuting: When on the road, in the bus, in your car or walking, instead of waiting to “arrive,” and being agitated over traffic, say: This is it and simply be there. Nothing you do can make it move faster.
- Washing dishes: feel the water, the smoothness of the plates, the rhythm of your hands. This is it.
- Cooking: smell the ingredients, feel the heat of the stove, the act of nourishing yourself or others. This is it.
- Cleaning: notice what you’re doing and how it transforms a space. Do things slowly. This is it.
- Conversations: While listening to someone you love, remind yourself: this is it, and give them full attention instead of thinking about what other things you can do.
- Little beauties: When you hear the sound of rain, birdsong, an evening sky or little beauties of everyday mundanity, stop for a breath. Here, too, you can tell yourself, ‘This is it’ and enjoy the brief beauty.
- Before sleep: And before sleeping, as you rest your head, let the day be complete. Leave today in today. Do not carry it to tomorrow and say, This is it.
This way, even small chores can become mini-practices in our practice of life, grounding us in the present and reminding us that life doesn’t only happen in “special moments.”
This is as much a reminder for you as for me.
So let us live today, be today and do today what we can live, be and do today.
May we be good practitioners of life.
May we see that nothing is outside the path. Everything IS our path.
xx
P.S This was a part from my Mindful Monday Newsletter. To receive my newsletter directly to your inbox, subscribe below. It would be wonderful to have you ❤️
Journal Prompt of the Week
Table of Contents
- Is there something I’ve been postponing, waiting for the “right time”? What is one step I can take today, instead of waiting?
- Think of a recent moment when you felt impatient (traffic, a queue, waiting for a reply). How could you have embraced it as this is it?
- Which problem, discomfort, or challenge am I trying to escape? How can I sit with it and acknowledge: this is it, and I can meet it?
- Who or what is in my life right now that I often take for granted? How can I fully be with them today and remember: this is it?
Blog Post of the Week
Quote of the Week
One from Others
Don’t ask, “Will this make me happy?”, but ask, “Will this choice enlarge or diminish me?”
— James Hollis
One from me
Do good and forget that you have done any good.
This much for today!
I wish you a wonderful week ahead
Love and regards,
Vishaka
Leave a Reply