IT IS a constant challenge trying to resist becoming caught up in the material world in which we live, if you are of a mind to avoid it. I know that when I start to get dissatisifed with my lot that I feel awful and can't do the work that I have chosen to do – that is, trying to help others to be the best that they can be.
Even though I know that in order to be happy you have to live life in the present moment and not concern yourself with thinking about the past and not dwelling on how to achieve the best possible future, it is difficult to remain consistent. Being human comes with a constant desire to improve your lot, to get a better education or more experience in order to improve your work life, or to have a bigger house, a bigger car or, my own desire, a bigger garden.
Our society teaches you that these things are how your success is measured, but when you prescribe to this mode of success rating, the chances are that unless you are at the top of the tree, dissatisfaction can easily set in. If you are at the apex of the pyramid another struggle begins – how to remain there? What does it cost you in terms of work hours, stress levels and demands on your time to maintain this?
In my daily job I constantly treat people who are under pressure to work more, have more and spend more. For others it is the stress felt in just being able to earn enough to maintain a basic standard, but what is more important in this life is the achievement of happiness today with where you are and what you have got.
Last week I felt downright miserable and when I spent time considering what was wrong I found I was not living in the now and not enjoying what was happening in the moment. The wise-up call came through watching Simon Reeve's journey through the Carribbean, witnessing the horrendous environments that so many people in countries like Honduras, Mexico, and Jamaica survive in every day, where lives are fraught with absolute danger, living conditions are Spartan, with food shortages, and sanitation issues. Yet these people are full of hope and have found a way to deal with their current lot.
What struck me most was their attitude of stoic acceptance and a will to deal with the here and now and be happy in the moment.
I was helped too, by having subscried to Deepak Chopra and Oprah Winfrey's 21-day gratitude meditation course on the web. Each day a 20-minute meditiation gives time and space to get back to what is inside, and an opportiunity for stillness.
Today's meditation on the subject of gratitude recommended "saying yes to life, saying thank you, that gratitude is in the present. When we are distracted we are never satisfied. When we are present in the moment we are complete. Grace can only be found in the present moment;p it lives in the here and now."
Meditation grounds and centres us and allows calmness and peacefulness. Practising meditation regularly is like riding a bicycle – it becomes an automatic ability once you have learnt it, so in times of need to you can instantly get into the zone, allowing you to centre and restore yourself no matter what is going on around you.
Here is one very quick little trick I learnt from yesterday's practise. Close your eyes, imagine that you are on a beautiful sandy beach, you can hear the waves lapping gently, you can feel the sunshine on your skin, you can smell the salty sea air, all around you is bright and beautiful. Now open you eyes: your whole surroundings will look so much brighter. The lesson... every moment is filled with grace.
You my still be able to catch some of these meditations, just Google Deepak Chopra and it will come up. Well worth listening to – everyone should give themselves the gift of 20 minutes peace in a day. If it's too late to access this year's, in the worst-case scenario you should be able to register for next year.
r.armstrong@irishnews.com
