‘Not now,’ said my father. ‘Not now,’ said my mother. ‘Not now,’ I said to my children. ‘Not now,’ I said to myself. ‘Not now,’ said my managers.‘Not now,’ say my clients. Not now is almost always followed by ‘I have no time.’ If I had kept a tally of the number of times I have used this argument in my life, I could boast a top score. But by having no time, I have in fact already wasted a lot of precious time. And I am not the only one. Somewhere we do know it, and still we ignore the importance of time in the now.
‘Someone else has just made exactly the same suggestion you made last time and I am definitely going to do it, but not now. Next year,’ was how my client started the session.
‘You haven’t started yet?’ I was curious about the result.
‘I do feel like it, but I have no time right now. I have other things to do first. My customers and the other things come first. I’ll do it next year. Being creative for myself can wait a while longer.’
I suggested we take a moment to look at what ‘I have no time.’ was doing to her, but I ran into resistance. She did not want to talk about it. Not now. Later. Tuning in to her energy, I sensed that I should not simply let this opportunity slip by. With the argument that I did not want to persuade her to be creative for herself with her beloved clay, I was able to persuade her to look at the effect of time on her body and her emotions.
“Always take the time for the things that make you happy. Do not wait until the time is exactly right. You will almost certainly miss the right moment.”
For me it is a real delight to work with someone who can perceive energetically as well as this client. It is more playing and connecting than working. It is experiencing together and looking forward to a result we do not know in advance.
‘When you think ‘I have no time.’, where do you feel it in your body?’ She pointed to her throat and did not say a word. We were on our way. Now all I had to do was ask questions. The images would surface all by themselves and contain the answers that were needed for her growth process.
‘What shape does ‘I have no time.’ have in your throat?’
‘It looks like a stone. A black one.’
‘What kind of stone?’
‘A rocky one.’
‘If you look further, what do you see then?’
‘I see glimmers. There are luminous little dots everywhere.’ She was in good contact with her visual perception. ‘It looks more like anthracite.’
‘Focus on the glimmers. What happens then?’ She took a moment to observe.
‘Everything starts to sparkle. It becomes a great firework display. I feel moved by the beauty of it.’
‘Keep looking. Breathe it in. Let the fireworks in completely. Allow the emotion. Take it into you.’
‘My whole body starts to tingle. Oh, I feel my blood flowing.’ If enthusiasm, wonder and silence can go hand in hand, that was the case here.
‘Keep feeling. Stay with the flow of your blood. Keep looking. What is happening now?’
‘Oh, oh, I can’t believe it. I feel myself living. I am alive. I am alive!’
‘What does it do to you when you feel yourself living?’
‘I feel blissful. I am. I am here and now. What an experience.’
It became quieter than quiet. ‘Can’t you speak any more?’ With the hand she waved in front of her throat, she gestured that she could not. She sat in her chair glowing and shining. And so did I. Seeing someone arrive in the here and now, in the presence of ‘I am’, that is the greatest reward for my work.
‘All the questions I wanted to ask have disappeared,’ she whispered. That is how it goes in the here and now. Most questions become irrelevant. With the beautiful music of Shaina Noll — Resting in the now — we rounded off the session. I will not see my client again for several months. Someone who feels herself living does not need to come regularly.
“ Smile, breathe and go slowly.” Thich Nhat Hanh
From ‘I have no time.’ we had arrived in the silence of the soul. A field from which other possibilities arise and other decisions are taken. I have no time is then replaced by the priorities of life. Time Management becomes simple. You step out of the zombie mode in which, day in day out, you mindlessly carry out unimportant things you invest a lot of time in. From the here and now, Time Management evolves into Attention Management, with attention for the priorities that let you feel the flow of life. Do give it a try and be amazed at the number of unimportant things you can cross off. I have no time can then no longer be used as an excuse that you know is really a little lie.
With Attention Management the argument of time loses its power. It is not time that is responsible for what you do and do not manage to get done. The responsibility lies with you and with the choices you make. What do you choose? Which choices are given priority? Where do you invest your attention?
“Taking time for yourself is a choice.”
You choose whether or not to get enough sleep. You choose whether or not to eat healthily. You choose whether or not to watch Netflix for hours. You choose whether or not to meditate. You choose whether or not to love. You choose. Time and time again. Just feel how powerful this is. Every time you choose your (life) priorities, you feel your strength and your self-confidence grow. Time that is filled meaningfully gives you a satisfied feeling about yourself. From there you can make new and powerful choices again. The new year that is approaching is a splendid occasion for it, but in fact you do not have to wait that long. You can choose from the NOW.
Hilde Van Bulck
Consciousness architect — Speaker — Writer — Systemic constellation facilitator and advisor
AMI Activator — Motivator — Inspirer
www.hildevanbulck.com