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Learning to Focus on The Present Moment

An Imagery Script by Arlene F. Harder, MA, MFT

If you are like an increasingly number of today people, you may want to learn how to quiet the chatter of your mind and to more easily experience yourself as separate from the roles you play in life, from your responsibilities and opinions, which you may have used to define yourself. From this calm center within, you may be able to then get in touch with the intuition that complements rational thought, which is often called the voice of the human spirit or the larger Spirit that connects us all. By using this script you will learn how you can become detached from sensations of the body, from emotions and desires, and from the thoughts and opinions of the mind that may intrude upon the imagery process.

As with all the other imagery scripts found in Learning Place Online, even if you just read this and don't use it as an imagery "exercise," it can be quite helpful. At least it will give you an idea of what it might be like to actually take time to focus, with intention, on each moment. If you would like to explore using imagery further, you may want to look at Imagery for Transformation, Health, and Peace of Mind. If you do use the following as an imagery exercise, however, I suggest you first read Using Imagery Scripts.

I have used this script as the basis for Mindfulness Meditation. You might want to use both of these pieces.

Begin to focus on this moment by getting comfortable and gently closing your eyes. . . And as you allow your body to feel fully supported, take a few slow, deep abdominal breaths, filling your lungs to capacity and releasing the air as completely as possible. . . . You might want to use your first breath as a signal to your body that you are willing and ready to relax. To do this you take in a full breath through your nose, hold it for just a moment and then slowly exhale through your mouth, as though you are blowing on a candle. As you exhale, say to yourself, "I am ready to relax" or simply "relax." If you use this special breath every time you want relax, you will soon discover you are able to relax more easily each time. . . .

And now, let your body breathe according to its own natural rhythm, slowly, easily, without effort. . . . Notice how each breath is designed for the moment in which you breathe it. No matter how hard you try, you cannot breathe a breath in this moment that you will need five minutes from now, just as you could not have taken a breath five minutes ago and saved it for this moment. And so allow your breathing to help you focus on this present moment, this piece of time that has never been before and will never be again. . . . . . Let go of what happened before you came into this room. . . . Let go of what you plan to do when you leave. . . . Be here in this moment now. . . ..

As you relax and focus on this moment in time, remember that there is no one correct way to do this exercise. There are many ways to go within and to become aware of who you are when your mind is not filled with chatter and noise. However you experience this exercise-and whatever you get out of it today-will be just right for you today. Whatever happens each time you do this exercise will be just what you need on the journey you are taking to discover more about yourself.

As you continue to relax and to experience who you are in this moment, some part of your body may try to get your attention. And if you feel it will help, move a little so that part of your body can become more comfortable. If moving doesn't work as well as you would like, then speak to that part of your body, telling it that you will pay attention to it later, but right now you want to concentrate on relaxing. Let the discomfort fade into the background as you withdraw any focus on your body and let yourself relax more and more completely. . .

Your body is a wonderful instrument. It has allowed you to experience the physical pleasures of life and to be active in the world. Certainly your body is very important. But you can control your body, at least to some extent, and therefore it is important to remember that while you have a body, your body is not the essence of who you are. So just be aware of this moment in time and let go of any attention to the sensations of your body. . . Be here now. . . .

As you continue to relax more deeply and to experience being here in this moment, you may notice some disquieting emotion you have been feeling today. Perhaps before you began you were worried, anxious or upset about something and that feeling has returned to intrude into this exercise or you may be aware of desires that would require you to act if you were to pay attention to them. Of course, later, when the exercise is done and you return to issues of daily life, you may want to deal with the cause of your emotions or respond to those desires. Now, however, it is time to let them go. So I invite you to put your emotions and desires into a small boat that is tied up to a dock with a long, long rope. Let them drift away with the current of relaxation, knowing that later you can pull in the rope and allow your emotions and desires to return, if you wish. . . . .

Your emotions allow you to experience the world in a wonderful way. They connect you with others through joy and sadness, anger and fear. Emotions give your life depth, strength and intensity. So, too, aspirations, dreams and desires are an important part of being human. You certainly have emotions and desires. But you can observe and understand your emotions, so the essence of who you are is not your emotions. You can control and deny your desires, so you are not your desires. Just be aware of this moment and let go of any attention to your emotions and desires. . . . Be here now. . . .

And as you focus on this moment and move ever closer to the center within, you may notice thoughts and fragments of thoughts that come unannounced and demand your attention. Right now, for example, you may be judging how well you are doing this exercise, but paying attention to self-critical thoughts can obviously interfere with the experience of being in the moment. So when any thought interrupts this quiet place within and walks onto the stage of your mind, chattering to you about this or that, allow it to be there without giving it undue attention. Without an audience, the thought will wander off the stage. You may also want to detach yourself from your thoughts by coming back to an awareness of your breath, and by being aware that you can only breathe one breath at a time. Let each breath bring you back to the present and help quiet your mind. . . .

Certainly your mind is a wonderful tool. It has allowed you to reason and use logic. Over the years your mind has accumulated many facts and you have learned to change your mind to accommodate new information. Through the faculty of your mind you have been able to resolve problems, to be creative and to meet many challenges. You have a mind. It is a very wonderful mind. You have many good ideas. But because you can change your opinions and create new ideas, "who you are" is not your mind nor the facts you know. Just be in this moment, without attachment to your thoughts. Be here now. . . . .

Allow yourself to quietly and simply "be," without attention to your body and its sensations, without attention to your emotions and desires, or to your mind and its opinions. Instead, let yourself be aware of a calm center that lies within you, a place filled with comfort and peace. And each time you are aware of a sensation in your body, each time you sense an emotion or need arising and each time a thought intrudes into the quiet of this place within, let it go and return to the center of your being. Allow yourself to simply "be," without attachment to anything except the experience of "being.". . . . .

What is this part of you that is able to experience being here in the center of your inner world? This part of you, this part of each of us, has been called many names and defined in many different ways. It has been called the Fair Witness of the Self or the Inner Objective Observer. It is the part within you that has the power to direct and control the many forces that otherwise would take charge of your life. It is the whole that makes sense of the varied contradictory parts of the personality. It is the part of you that chooses. It is the "I" in the statement, "I am." It is the "you" and the "self" in the word "yourself." It is your life force. It is your spirit. It is the essence of your life, that which makes you what you are, your fundamental nature.

Allow yourself now to experience "who you are" in the center of your inner world. Simply be here in this moment. . . .

You may remain in this centered world, focused on the present moment and experiencing who you are as long as you wish. And then, when you are ready to return to the busy routines of life, bring your awareness back to the room, take an energizing breath, stretch your arms and legs, open your eyes and come back to full alertness, relaxed and in peace.

© Copyright 1984, Arlene F. Harder, MA, MFT