Many Sunday mornings greet me with an early morning travel show as I roll into church. I appreciate the way the show speaks of travel and in doing so, life. On a recent interview, a renowned troubadour was speaking about the difference between experiencing the culture you travel to and simply sight seeing. They lovingly lamented the problem with taking pictures of everything you see or simply jumping from tourist spot to tourist spot that you miss the true heart of the trip.
We do this daily, don’t we?
Now before I launch into an expected diatribe on selfie culture, let me explain something: I love having photographed memories. Thanks to my forward thinking wife, I have 1,000’s of pictures of every stage of my son’s life. I revisit these often with tears in my eyes (and often while I should be working). These captured memories are good things. I think the issue comes when the need to capture the moment changes, distracts, or towers over the moment itself. The difference is manufacturing reality and letting reality have the space it deserves. There is an un-capturable beauty in the simple grins and mischief of a tiny human. Not every one needs photographed, but all of them deserve to be lived in. Such is life.
So how are we living in the present moment? Are we mindful?
All too often, life passes us by, either by accident or by choice. In our current age, it is simpler than ever to break from reality. There are limitless distractions and entertainments. Given the stakes of life and the news, there is no judgment for those who live detached. Life is hard. The daily grind can be crushing and absurd. But within this, there is a present beauty – a mundane heartbeat that is dying to live within every eye disciplined enough to fix its gaze. We learn something when we are intentionally present in the moment. If we can have the strength to tune down the distractions, we might find a hidden desire, a lost art, or a forgotten love. We might truly remember what it means to be alive. Can we live in this age? Past the noise and chaos? Past the insecurities and boasts? Past the need to be important?
Today, let’s be present in the moment. Close your laptop. Slide your phone back into the dark abyss of your pocket. See people. Listen to the inner pulse of life begging for your attention.
Matt simon blog 