“Wherever you are, be all there.” — Jim Elliot
Hey there Reader,
I’ve been thinking about presence.
And maybe this is the word that brings the whole series together as we end this week.
Because when we talk about yearning for simpler times, I wonder if what we are really missing is not just the way things used to be.
Maybe what we are missing is the way we used to be in those moments.
More present.
More available.
More able to sit at a table without reaching for a phone.
More able to have a conversation without mentally running through the next ten things we had to do.
More able to enjoy a moment while we were actually in it, instead of documenting it, rushing through it, or wondering what was coming next.
I don’t think most of us are intentionally absent from our own lives.
I think we are overwhelmed.
There is so much competing for our attention. Work. Family. News. Notifications. Responsibilities. Expectations. Worries about the future. Unfinished things from the past.
And without even realizing it, we can start living slightly ahead of ourselves.
We are in one moment, but already reaching for the next one.
We are with one person, but thinking about someone else.
We are doing one thing, but carrying the weight of five other things at the same time.
No wonder we feel tired. Presence asks us to come back.
Back to this conversation.
Back to this breath.
Back to this meal.
Back to this walk.
Back to this person.
Back to this life.
And here’s what I’m realizing: presence does not require everything to be simple.
It makes things feel simpler because we are no longer trying to live in every moment at once. We are only being asked to live this one.
That feels powerful to me.
Because we may not be able to slow the whole world down.
We may not be able to remove every complication, solve every problem, or quiet every bit of chaos around us. But we can choose to return to where we are.
And when we do, we start to notice the things we’ve been talking about throughout this series.
Joy is easier to find when we are present enough to notice it.
Hope is easier to hold when we are not living entirely in fear of what might happen.
Laughter is easier to receive when we are not too distracted to let it in.
Peace is easier to protect when we are aware of what is pulling us away from it.
Wonder is easier to experience when we slow down long enough to see what is right in front of us.
Connection is deeper when the people we love can feel that we are actually there.
Maybe simpler times are not only behind us. Maybe pieces of them are still available in the moments we are willing to fully inhabit.
The morning light.
The conversation.
The music.
The meal.
The pause.
The ordinary moment that becomes meaningful because we were present enough to receive it.
Presence is not about doing life perfectly. It is about not missing the life we are already in.
And maybe that is one of the most important things we can practice.
Something to think about:
Where in your life have you been physically present, but mentally somewhere else?
Take action:
This week, choose one moment each day to be fully present. No multitasking. No phone. No rushing to the next thing. Just be where you are. It could be during your morning coffee, a conversation, a walk, a meal, or even a few quiet breaths before you begin the day.
Notice what changes when you stop trying to be everywhere at once.
Hit reply and tell me - What is one thing you have discovered through this "Simpler Things" series? I'd love to hear from you.
All the love,
Maria