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Category: Being Present

Noise [Poem]

Published on January 17, 2022 
It’s quiet up here

Above clouds
Above signals
Above noise

I’m disconnected
And my mind begins to float.

Looking down I imagine

What’s being said
What’s being heard
What’s calling for attention

And I brush at my beard
over what’s not.

Not everything needs noise

To feel seen
To feel heard
To feel connected

But noise isn't the type
To just give in or relent.

The window calls me back

And as I look upon the clouds
And vast sky
And bend of the earth

I feel a deep sense of calm
and—

I glance back at my screen

I clack a few keys
Move around a few lines
And unknowingly wonder how I might

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The Ends And Beginnings Of Now

Published on November 15, 2021

We’re all given a finite number of moments to live.

The moment that you’ve currently made it to, also happens to be the precise moment when it all ended in another person’s story.

Now is a gift.

One that so many others would have done ANYTHING to have back.

Live like you mean it.

Let’s Take Things Down A Notch

Published on June 5, 2021

When I rush, I forget things. When I take my time, I remember.

When I skip my daily 20 minute power nap, I feel drained for hours. When I remember to take my 20 minute power nap, I feel great for hours.

Likewise, when I skip my daily one hour workout, I feel guilty for the entire rest of the day. When I discipline myself to do it, I feel confident and proud for the rest of the day.

When I pause between tasks, my mind is able to buffer out former tasks and brace for the next ones. When I don’t pause between tasks, I get scatterbrained and carry former tasks into future tasks.

When I give myself one hour to write an entry into MoveMe Daily, like this one, I usually finish in 20 minutes. When I give myself 20 minutes to write an entry, it usually takes me an hour.

Slowing down isn’t a mistake; it’s a strategy.

Milestones In What (Later) Feels Like Minutes

Published on May 15, 2021

I distinctly remember times when I would look out of my middle school classroom window and think to myself, “Wow—before I know it, I’m going to be in high school.”

And years later, when I would think back on that thought in high school, I would again think to myself, “Wow—at this rate, before I know it, I’m going to be graduating college.”

And in what felt like the blink of an eye, there I was walking across the graduation stage. I even remember thinking shortly thereafter, “Wow—pretty soon it will have been 10 years since I’ve graduated college.”

And that’s the milestone that I just hit this month. And here I am thinking to myself again, “Wow—pretty soon I’ll be finishing up my 30s and moving into a whole new decade.”

The thought of time going by that fast scares me. But, it also drives me to make every moment worthwhile while I’m here—in my 30s. Because before I know it, in what will surely feel like the blink of an eye, I’ll be turning 40 and once again in awe of how fast time flew by.

Best to make the best of it while we’re here, where we are—today.

A Small Moment Reminder (For Now And For Later)

Published on May 8, 2021

While I was walking my dog, I stepped right into the heavenly scent of backyard cookout for the first time this season and was lifted.

It was one of those “small moments” that had me utterly present and, at least for that short time, made me feel like nothing else mattered.

I’m sure you can think of a time when you were similarly swept off your feet by the majesty of a moment—that place where all of your “matters” seemed to briefly fade away.

Well, here’s the thing: there’s no shortage of “small moments.” And there’s certainly no shortage of things that could captivate your senses.

What we’re actually short on is attention. And what we’re missing is the ongoing opportunity that’s available right in front of us—now, and again, and again…

This post became the introduction for: 19 Quotes from Narrow Road To The Interior on Solitude, Travel, and Poetry