The pain in my chest and throat are familiar friends that I resent. Once again, triggered and hurt from the old fragments in my body and mind. I light candles, incense, turn music on, preparing to sink into another session of self-soothing and inner child work. Then, I stop and ask myself the question, ‘what is causing this pain?’ The answer could have been long, complex and abstract. The long answer is what has led me to heal and attempt to untangle the complexity of my humanness.

Instead, I channel a short, simple and clear answer: what causes suffering is anything that takes you out of the present moment. Triggered back into a wound from the past or worrying about the future that has not yet come, conditions the mind to be anywhere but here. The subconscious mind often looks for any signs of past pains repeating itself as a defense mechanism. As well, the human mind is unique in that it has the ability to feel emotions based on thoughts alone. It is important to honor emotions that come up… as emotions are the bodies messenger and often lets us know when something is off or not.

With that, taking the time to be conscious and distinguish between what’s happening in the present moment and what isn’t, empowers us. In the spiritual community, we often hear the phrase ‘Stay Present‘- a pretty little slogan with tattoo potential. But how much weight has that term held up for you? Has the answer been in this phrase all along? I close my eyes and sink into the present moment. I notice how everything is good here. Actually, everything is great here. My life is currently a dream and when I learn to take one moment at a time, life becomes not only manageable, but magical.