Making makes us present
Or "Creating is everything"
Friday again - enjoy the moment! ~JRC
Think about time and your place in it. Where are your thoughts most often? Do you reminisce about the past? Are you anticipating the future? Worried about either or both? If you are like most of us, you probably answered "yes" to at least one of these. But being in the moment? That is the real hurdle in life.
Being present of mind is a unique challenge. And no wonder; as soon as we grasp the "present," it is already the "past." And if we think too long about it, we begin imagining the "future." The present, then, is elusive. It’s barely here even though it’s somehow always here.
The present - a series of fleeting moments, over and over, or an ever-revolving “now,” infinitely greater than the past and future combined?
Some learn to meditate to deal with this paradox. In meditation, one lets go of what has happened and eases the mind of future concerns. In meditation, the practitioner engrosses in the here and now.
It takes years of discipline to become mindful in this way. And for many of us, we struggle even after much study. But there is another way. And anyone - with no practice at all - can do it.
Make something.
Engrossed in creativity, we lose track of time. Minutes, even whole hours, rush by without us noticing. But we’re not mindless. We are mind-full, as we make. It's the maker's "flow," that trance-like state where we are not bothered by the past or future. In the flow, we engage in the present moment.
Understanding ourselves within the flow teaches us a great deal about existence.
In making, we learn the "present" is not some blind interpretation of being, devoid of past and future. Instead, it is a tangible example of the entirety that is "now." We draw on all that came before to make something. And we simultaneously plan for the future to see a project through.
But as we create, we do not dwell on either past or future. We take from them what they provide. They are tools used for the present - and nothing more.
We see how the present shapes things to come when we create. We learn, and skills honed come along with us as we make and make again. Ever-growing, ever-changing, the present takes on new meaning but is always with us.
Being in the present while making gives a glimpse inside the workings of the universe. We let go of the trappings of mind and allow ourselves to dip into the river of time. Making lets us see the present, perhaps like nothing else.
And it is everything.
Until next time.
JRC