No. 5 - This Moment In Time

So here it is… this very moment in time that I write this piece, and that you read it. It is the only moment like it there will ever be – if you can imagine a moment in time has an existence. Indeed, it is the only intersection of time where all of the myriad things that happen in and around our lives are happening as they are right now. It is the only moment in time we have to think and do those things we must in order to move our agendas forward, or to cause them to slip.

This moment has no beginning or end… it simply is. To understand what this means we should learn to stop everything we are doing. We should turn off the television, radio, computer, and telephone - and we should turn away from all other distractions. We should do this to allow our minds time to settle and ease into reflections about things that are important to us. We should make this time our Moments In Time to gain a truer sense of self and a greater understanding of how we can move our personal agendas forward.

I’ve had many conversations with many people, most not aware that as long as there is another distraction in ones environment, one cannot truly practice undivided attention. We go about thinking as long as we pay some attention to the conversation, or put some thought to the problem, that is sufficient to keep things moving. While that may be somewhat true – because we will figure something out – it does not allow us to fully appreciate the situation and use all of our mental prowess to either solve the problem or develop a greater sense of self.

A simple test: try to have a meaningful conversation with someone you care about while at the same time watching television. If you were able to give your undivided attention to the person you would have demonstrated there is no need to have the television on when conducting important conversations. If you find yourself distracted by a commercial or some appealing activity that’s on screen, you would have demonstrated it is not possible to share ones attention in an undivided fashion with two competing forces. Furthermore, it’s been my experience that I can more fully relate to the person I’m speaking with when I can focus on the conversation after eliminating all distractions.

Part of the challenge we have in today’s world is to find ways to make time for what’s important. All too often we do not include personal time on that very long list of things to do each day or – when we do – it’s somewhere at the bottom of the list. Life requires so much of us. We all have felt life is an individual journey and no one really cares enough to want to share in that journey. After all, how much time does anyone have to really care about someone or something outside of their immediate life concerns..?

If we could start taking only five minutes a day to stop all movement, to sit still in some quiet place to purposefully allow our minds to settle and to consider the really relevant questions (who we are, where we are in life, what is really important to us, why we have been placed on this Earth, what will be the legacy we will leave to our children, etc.), I believe we would do our families, our communities, and ourselves a great justice because we would develop a greater sense of our true mission in life. We could go about our daily life knowing more fully what is important to us. Most importantly, we would gravitate towards other like-minded Brothers and Sisters with a greater willingness to work together collaboratively for the good of all.

When we take time to look within; when we put forth the effort to genuinely question what’s important to us; when we are true to ourselves to the point where we know we each deserve prioritized personal time (alone) to think on things that need attention, it is my belief that we will come to a greater understanding of our true calling in life. I believe we will then become far more willing to embrace our Brothers and Sisters, even our Community because we would see that the most important thing we can (and must) do for ourselves, our families, and our community is to demonstrate to our youth and peers how to build ourselves (individually and collectively) up.

I encourage you to take this moment in time to reflect upon this truth and allow yourself the freedom to honestly consider what’s important to you. I encourage you to take this moment in time to be still and quiet so your mind can process some issue that’s been heavy on your heart. And I encourage you to take this moment in time to consider the possibility of what we can accomplish together when we are willing to embrace one another in the spirit of collaboration, collective unity, and community empowerment.

…at the end of the day… this very moment… is This Moment In Time… for you.