Present

Over the years I’ve indulged myself in many fads and trends, including all the relevant fitness ones. I’ve had my many years of dancing, running, Zumba, lifting weights, aerobics and of course yoga intermittently through it all – and this is long before it became cool to do it all together via an app. I have effectively been present, done that.

Within movement, yoga is a practice I meander from and keep returning to. Like a moth to a flame, perhaps? And no, not because I am Indian. My favourite part is actually how present I need to be. Yoga as a practice has no room for your mind to waver – no room to think about the laundry, what to cook for friends coming over and if your client really meant what they said? A wavering loose thought in the middle of a pose and you are face flat on the floor. Quite unforgiving on one side but very rewarding on the other. It’s one of the few forms of movement where I simply cannot tune out. I am engaged with the movement. I am where I need to be. There is no time to worry about what came before and there is really no way to worry about what will come after.

To be present means I need to tune in.

And this is true for everything at life too – be it at work, with family and friends, with how you eat food among other things. In a world that is high on distraction – how exactly do you tune in?

Especially because – I grew up at a time social media was still gaining traction. Newer and newer social platforms were coming up and being there was considered to add to your social value. Remember getting Orkut testimonials? Ha! And having a Facebook status? And all this – long before Insta stories and TikTok’s. Suddenly being an over-sharer is very cool. Everyone wants in on everyone’s lives. All the people you probably did not care about, you suddenly care about. And then there are 5 social lives to manage apart from your real life. It is all so consuming! And addictive? The dopamine of being present online, being connected, being relevant is an endless loop. And in 2024, if you don’t have a social presence, are you even present anywhere?

Outtakes with no real reason to be shared except to say hi I’m present in this article?

On the opposite spectrum of being present online, I discovered the writing of Cal Newport before the pandemic which talks about digital minimalism, how to do deep work and really tune in to work and life. And if you haven’t read his books, I highly recommend it. Discovering his writing, really sparked a huge shift in me as a person. I realised that at any moment and point, I could either be present online or I could be present in my life. Because if I am present and tuned into my life, it would never occur for me to be online. And of course, the focus at any point can vary – but it is invariably a choice.

Then, in the pandemic, being present online escalated to an all-time high and multi-tasking a badge of honour. So, one was always wired but never fully present? Distractions became much worse. And I was no different – mostly scattered. Like many others my anxiety was getting the better of me. It was then that one of my closest friends, S dragged me back into yoga. She could see me lose my mind with everything and insisted when things opened, that I must resume. And honestly, that one hour of being present in yoga after months of being cooped up really helped me bring myself together.

As someone who tends to overthink a situation out often and go to worst case scenarios fairly quickly, it has been a journey to learn to be in the moment. My therapist often says – exhale. It is only when she says that I realise that when I am not in the moment, I am often holding my breath in anticipation.

In the last few years of travel especially, I practice being present. I try not to have a checklist, a sourced to see list. In the age of the internet, there is going to be a fair amount of #fomo. The stupidity (I don’t think so) of spending so much money to go lie down in the park! The horror on most people’s faces when I mention that even though I lived in Paris last summer, I have not yet seen the Louvre. Not because I didn’t want to, it just didn’t work out? My main goal was to remain present with my time there and not worry if there will be more. And honestly, I would much rather have taken a nap at the park.

The Monocle Book of Gentle Living encapsulates being present as an inspiration to creativity.

The more I learn to be present, the more I find myself wanting to be offline. I want to just stare at the skies, listen to the birds, watch dogs, engage in real conversation. Now I use social media to keep updated on pop culture, stories that interest me and share memes with my friends. I don’t wish to be present online to say how I dropped coffee on me twice this week and how many picnics, walks, coffees and places I have been to this summer. Time is ticking and my life is much more valuable in the moment.  

To me, being present is the present.