Every second person asks me where I'm from but perhaps the more
pertinent question is: Where do I live?
Before starting my pick-a-path adventure I used to
spend far too much time living in the past or worrying about the
future. Living day-to-day and simplifying my needs has reminded me
the only thing we have for sure, is right now. To combat my
brain-wandering I make time for activities that I can climb inside
and get lost within, where time and space become irrelevant. Here
are three ways I've found to keep me in the present moment:
1. Push and pull and push and pull - finding rhythm
On Wednesday I left Sydney on my bicycle 'Meg' on route to the
central coast and it was the same old story. The first hour of
every ride is a battle between my conscious and subconscious mind.
The conscious part is thinking, 'Oh man, 3 hours to go, my bum
hurts, where am I going, am I getting sunburned?' but slowly
my subconscious brain takes over, like an old friend who places a
reassuring arm on my shoulder and says, 'Don't worry, we'll be
fine, just relax and enjoy the ride'. That's when I slip into
an almost meditative state, as addictive as a flat white coffee but without the lull after
the high. Check out the view at Saratoga when I finally arrived on
the Central Coast of NSW in a loved-up, happy state.
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2. Pulling a rabbit out of my pencil case - drawing out
creativity
Just like cycling, getting out a sketch pad and pencil always
feels like a mammoth effort. Procrastination kicks in and I cook a
meal, check my email or braid my hair - anything except for
starting. But once the first marks go down on the page my
chatterbox consciousness stops asking, 'What should I draw?
What if it looks crap?' and just gets on with it. I can lose
an hour or two as I slip into a different world where I'm a
magician and my pencil is the wand. This picture is one I drew when
sitting at the Manly Wharf bar with my little cousin Bry.
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3. Hoola hoop or do the funky chicken - you're never too old to
play
After cycling with a 78 year old and babysitting a six year old,
in the last few weeks I've seen first hand that age is just a
number. For some reason with every year that passes (especially
when it ends in a zero) we think our behavior has to change,
normally in a conservative direction. Whether it's making up moves
on the d-floor at a wedding or hoola hooping on the beach I try
wherever possible to let go of self consciousness thoughts like,
'What will people think, what if I look stupid?'. When I
relax and let all 31 years of imagination go wild it normally ends
in a heap of giggly breathlessness, like yesterday's hoola hooping
at Freshwater Beach with Ariyah and Sharne.
Yesterday while sitting at Balmoral Beach in Sydney with
friends, we spotted a woman who was enjoying her sandwich so much
that we couldn't help but watch her eat it. With every bite she
seemed to find new pleasure and she was completely unaware of
anything else around her.
What are your tricks for getting lost in the 'now'?