The Present Moment

Last updated on: July 12, 2013 at 5:04 pm by Grace Sandra

The Present Moment 2013-07-12T17:04:21-04:00 Grace Sandra

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

“WHAT IS IT?” I hear my 7.5 yr. old screaming from the other room.

A bit of explanation from my husband.

“BUT, WHAT. IS. IT? DADDY TELL ME NOW!”

A bit more explanation from my husband. A bit of laughing. A bit more frustrated tones from the son.

“IS IT AN OCEAN? IS IT EATING YOUR PEAS? IS IT LEARNING TO READ?!?”

///

I’m not even kidding, this banter goes on similarly for another 20 helpless minutes while I’m in the kitchen loading up the dishwasher. Finally I go in to find out what the ruckus is going on between these two. Their both sort of laughing but Ran’s face is red, hot, he’s bordering on frustration and enjoyment.

As it turns out, my husband has been reading him a few pages of The Present by Spencer Johnson each night. He’s been trying to explain to Ran what living in the present moment is. The concept is clearly over his head.

///

The next morning, I got incredibly motivated to take the training wheels off our sons bikes. Ran, who’s never much been into bike riding or even remotely interested in going training wheel free, miraculously agrees to learn.

I’ve got his handle bar with one hand, the other on the back of his seat. He’s nervous and he’s leaning on me as well. “I will not let go,” I promise. And then I start talking, not knowing how I’m going to finish. “The secret to learning to ride a bike is…” (oh crap what is the secret? Balance? Hard-work? Focus? Jeez, it’s been a long time!) I’m contemplating what to tell my impressionable little protege.

Instead, he finishes my sentence with a question: “…living in the present moment?”

“Yes!” I declare. “Yes. That’s exactly it!”

Spencer Johnson for the save.

///

“On Fridays around these parts we like to write. Not for comments or traffic or anyone else’s agenda. But for pure love of the written word. For joy at the sound of syllables, sentences and paragraphs all strung together by the voice of the speaker.

We love to just write without worrying if it’s just right or not. For five minutes flat.

Here’s how we do it:

Write for 5 minutes flat with no editing, tweaking or self critiquing.

Link back here and invite others to join in {you can grab the button code in my blog’s footer}.

3. Go and tell the person who linked up before you what their words meant to you. Every writer longs to feel heard.

OK, are you ready? Give me your best five minutes for the prompt: Present.”

–Lisa-Jo Baker’s Five Minute Friday

Family

Parenting

Ransom

learning to ride a bike

living in the present

Spencer Johnson

The Present

Previous Post

July 11, 2013

Making Lemonade or Excuses?

Next Post

July 15, 2013 Letting the Stupid Little Ni**er Go

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Abortion Abuse Survivor African Americans Black Campus Ministries Blogging Books Celebrities Depression Detroit Divorce Dreams entrepreneurialista Family Fashion Fashion & Hair Fashion Finds Fashion Tips Fitness & Body Love For You Girly-Girl Giveaways! Goal Setting Hair Adventures Home Human Trafficking Humor & Fun InterVarsity iphone Apps iphoneography Leadership Marriage Memoir Mentoring Movies Music My Faith My Life My Pregnant Life My Weight Watcher's Journey Netizen One Word Opinion Parenting Photography Policy Politics Pop Culture Product Reviews Race & Ethnicity Racism Ransom Rhys Second Marriage Self Leadership Social Justice Social Media Spiritual Disciplines T.V. Uncategorized Western Theological Seminary What I Wore What I Wore Wednesday Writing Writing Tips

Select a Month May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 December 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 April 2016 March 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 July 2015 June 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz