Being Present & Taking Notice

Hi Peeps
Thought I'd post an article on being present since over the past week I have been blessed to receive some reinforcing messages that have confirmed to me that I'm moving on the right pathway in my life.

Over the past few years, I have been learning a lot about being present, staying in the moment and taking notice of what is going on around me. I have found this important for a number of reasons from being

• better focussed in conversation with people, whether it is on a social or business level
• aware of those messages that come to us whether in a song or as a dream, or in nature
• able to clear the head in meditation and those times of quiet when we need to tune into our intuition.

Take for example the simple process of being totally present in a one to one conversation with a person. It doesn't matter whether it is a friend, business associate or in a sales conversation, we have all been guilty at one time or another of NOT being present for one reason or another. It might be that you have overheard another conversation nearby, or that you are wanting to move on and chat to somebody else you have seen out of the corner of your eye in a room full of people.

Here's the thing, by looking directly into the eyes of the person that you are in conversation with and being totally present ensures that you are able to connect with the other person 100% and give them the respect they deserve and vice versa. It also allows for a deeper connection enabling both parties to enter into a much more meaningful and authentic state of conversation, that will produce deeper understanding, learning and regard for each other. Next time you are in a one to one with another person, try it out (if you don't already do this)!

Awareness and being present of messages that come through to us in dreams, songs, in nature or even in movies can confirm we are moving in the right pathway or direction, that sometimes we may need some affirmation of.

I'd like to cite a couple of recent examples of situations that have occurred, the first one a few days ago for me. Firstly a bit of background to this event.

I have become very interested in plant medicine of the Amazon over the past few years and to me it is my truth and I have seen really amazing personal benefits in embracing this medicine and spirituality. One of the things that has been key for me with finding this truth, is the mountains of distractions served to all of us in our western society, the programs "sold" to us that keep us compliant and removed from our roots and our truth.

Along the way it has been fascinating to become aware of musicians and key public personalities who have also embraced this medicine and spirituality too. So, I got to thinking that there must have been some sort of "seed" planted way back to have drawn me this pathway, maybe, maybe not, who knows.

So, back to the situation of a few days ago. I decided to look up Michael Franks on Spotify, since I started listening to his music way back in the early 80's when he was very prominent in the world of music. Being a musician myself, I was always more interested in the music rather than the lyrics, so never really paid a lot of deep attention to what he was singing about. Recently, I have been building a repertoire of songs to sing and play...so, I decide to listen to one of my all time favourite Michael Franks Songs - Antonio's Song (The Rainbow Song) and was totally blown away by the message in the song that just confirmed to me that I am on the right path.

His message is from way back then, when I was listening to his music and NOT being present to what the lyrics were trying to say to me. Firstly, the chorus of the song:

"Sing the song, forgotten for so long, let the music flow like light into the rainbow."
"We know the dance, we have, We still have the chance to break these chains and flow,
like light into the rainbow."

Then the really pertinent second half of the 2nd verse...

"And lost in La Califusa" (meaning Los Angeles, California, USA)
"When most of my hope was gone, Antonio's samba led me, to the Amazon."

This blew my mind and clearly to me there was a reason for me deciding to go back and find this song from so long ago to
re-learn, as part of my direction I'm taking with my life. This is what I mean by being present with what is going on around us everyday and taking notice and then integrating into our lives.

The second situation occurred with a friend, who had somebody quite close to them who passed last week. The person who passed was a Maori Healer and it was his time to move on. My friend got a "message" (a feeling she experienced) that she needed to look out for rainbows over the coming week and so for the past week everyday she has been seeing multiple rainbows each and every day. Be being totally present to this situation she has been able to acknowledge that this experience is directly associated with the passing of her close friend - the Maori Healer. See the photo below, taken today as we were driving near Perth, our home town. As you can see, it is a double - the really bright one displaying under the lighter rainbow. What is interesting is the sheer brightness of this rainbow - incredible.

Finally, I would like to write about being present when engaging in meditation. Now meditation can take many forms as it doesn't need to be a formal guided meditation at all. It can be sitting on a bench near a lake or in a bushland setting just being present with what is going on around you. Being aware of birds, the wind blowing through trees, people talking, whatever sounds that occur around you at the time. This can allow you to be open to more intuitive thoughts and to receive information or subtle messages that can assist you to make the heart centred decisions that tend to be more accurate than decisions made in the head. Additionally, in a meditation of total silence, if you can move past the "self talk noise", you can really open up the capacity to receive subtle messages that can keep you on your guided pathway in your life.