A fundamental lesson I have learnt from working with animals is the power of ‘being in the moment’. This is allowing ourselves to be fully present in an experience.
Very often in our busy lives we are only partly present with what we are doing. Our mind wanders ahead to future events or lingers on a moment in the past that is troubling us. Being in the moment can allow us to feel a greater sense of peace and fulfilment. It can also enable us to have a clearer connection with our animal companions.
Can you recall a time when you were having a really enjoyable chat with a friend? You were listening intently to everything they said and probably lost all track of time. At the end of the conversation it’s likely you felt energised, connected to your friend and engaged with life. Contrast this with meeting with a friend, but feeling distracted by something you must do when you get home. Your mind wanders in and out of the conversation and the time seems to pass by slowly. Once home, having dealt with what was concerning you, you realise that you didn’t enjoy your time with your friend like you usually do. Most of us have had both experiences. The former is how it feels when we are being or living in the moment.
Being in the moment is an essential part of working as an animal communicator. Working with animals in this state enables us to make a clear connection with them. On the animal communication workshops I run I share a variety of techniques to achieve this. For animals it’s natural. It’s the way they approach life. As humans we are less practiced in it, yet like anything the more often we do it the easier it becomes.
There are different approaches. I’m going to introduce you to a simple one in this blog.
If you are trying this out for the first time then it can be powerful to use nature as your classroom. I find being in nature, a great place to try new things. If you can’t be outside then perhaps you can find a space by a window where you can see outside.
Find somewhere that you can feel comfortable either seated or standing. The exercise will take about 5 minutes. You won’t be moving around so ensure you are warm enough. To start we will use three of your senses – sight, hearing and touch. Once you get the feel of what you are doing you can try using your other senses. You will soon learn for yourself which are the strongest for taking you into the present moment.
So first we will use sight. Choose a subject to focus on. Ideally, the smaller the better. It may be the petals of a flower, a leaf on a tree, a stone. It doesn’t matter what it is, just something you can comfortably focus on. Place your complete focus on this item and keep your gaze on it. Hold your gaze on this for about a minute (doesn’t need to be exact so no need to time !).
Next choose something you can hear to focus on. It might be the sound of a bird, the wind in the trees, it could be a buzz of traffic from a distant road, it doesn’t matter. Again give this sound your complete focus for a minute.
Then finally find something you can touch. You can pick something up and hold it in your hand or you could choose to focus on feeling your feet on the ground or your legs on the seat if you are seated. Again give complete focus to this for a minute.
Now you’re ready to bring all three senses in together. So focusing on what you chose to see, listen to and touch all at the same time. Do this for a couple of minutes. At first you may find some of your senses drift in and out. That’s fine. Do your best to focus on all three. Over time it becomes easier.
This is a very simple way to experience being in the moment. As we are individuals we will all have our own unique experience. A common feeling people experience is one of calm.
With this approach you are using your senses to anchor you into the experience and the present moment. Using one sense alone can form an anchor. Using three makes for a very strong anchor that can have a powerful effect of quietening even the busiest of minds.
If thoughts come into your head that is fine. Don’t fight with them. Just say ‘hello’ to them, then do your best to let them go. Imagine them floating away like a balloon. Write them down if it helps you to release them. You will find the more you accept that thoughts may come into your head rather than resist them the more easily your mind will settle down. For many of us our mind is not used to being quiet. With practice our minds get more comfortable with it.
If you wish you can build being in the moment practices this into your day to day activities. I find it has really powerful benefits to do so.
Being in the moment is not only an essential aspect of communicating with animals, it helps us live a more fulfilling life.