It’s said to be the time for presents, of gift giving and receiving… 

But is that really what we’re here for?

To give each other gifts to prove our love?

Recently I spent winter holidays in Cuba. This country has taught me a lot. They only have what they can make themselves within the country… food,  handmade items, essentials like rum and tobacco (hahaha),… and almost nothing imported. And so, the holidays there are not so much a time of gift giving. But a time of presence, rather than presents. A time to celebrate being alive. To enjoy being fully present. To dance and sing and laugh and enjoy each other.

When we’re you last fully present? Able to take in the full experience of being alive?

I fear so many of us are being robbed of that precious gift, the presence of this existence.

We are all so caught up in the next thing, striving towards the next thing, or simply focusing on getting through the day’s long ‘to do’ list, that we’ve forgotten why we are alive. 

That we are alive.

Right now.

Not in some future perfection. Or in some regretful past.

NOW.

This 5 senses meditation practice is helpful for bringing us back to the present. Come back into your body. Instead of giving all your attention to your mind, remember you also have a body. Embrace bodyfullness, instead of mindfullness.

What do you see right now? – describe colours, shapes…

What do you hear right now? – describe pitch, volume…

What do you smell right now? – describe the aroma… 

What do you taste right now? – describe is it sweet/bitter/sour…

What do you feel right now? – describe is it soft/hard/cold/hot

The benefits of being present are endless, and research is only starting to uncover all its benefits (from slowing down aging, increasing brain mass, reducing anxiety and depression, improving sleep, even helping to treat various inflammatory conditions, such as IBS).

The power of our attention is huge. Much like how the placebo effect remains the most powerful medical intervention. Attention can slow down the passage of time. And who doesn’t want more time in this ever faster moving life that we seem to be racing through?

Have you ever experienced a time when it felt like you were given extra minutes/hours/days to experience something? Or times when it felt sped up? It all went by so fast?

Start by working with your 5 senses. Hone in on each sense to slow down time, and become fully present in the here and now. 

After all, isn’t that the greatest present of all? Not the past, or the future. 

But presence in the present.