#long 3 days at the job. no plants or plant tasks in sight. miserable

[botanyshitposts]

if I don’t get another plant job soon I’m gonna start ripping and tearing. they’ll call me the guy who rips and tears

[eirenical]

F, I and N, I love h/c and I'm looking for some new writing ideas so I might try out something that you want ❤️💛💚💙💜

F: Care to share a favorite hurt/comfort fic?

OK, so this is becoming harder than I expected, so instead of a comprehensive list, I will just pull out a few favorites.  I know I’m leaving things out, but my brain is not quite up to the monumental task of listing all my favorite hurt/comfort fic tonight.  O_o;;;

then burn the ashes by @kvothes

Maybe they differ the most in their dispositions, in the way they react to injustice. Where Feuilly bruises, Enjolras bleeds.(Enjolras x Feuilly)

The writing and characterizations on this are just flat out gorgeous.  Enjolras texts Feuilly to ask him to look after his plant for the night.  Feuilly does so and finds himself still there when Enjolras returns in the morning, a bit shook up and bruised, but still somehow relieved to find Feuilly there.  Comfort and adorableness ensues.  ^_^

OK, I could probably just add: EVERYTHING EVER BY @takethewatch to this list and not be lying.  ;D  But a couple of specifics…

Carry On and the ensuing “fix-its/follow-ups”

Feuilly moves to a new city to start over. He plans to keep his head down this time, to work an 8 to 5 job and keep to himself and settle for getting by. His hopes are modest, reasonable: He hopes to keep up on his loan payments, to get along with his coworkers, to get through another Christmas alone.  

He doesn’t plan on getting sucked into a group of literacy activists who care way too much, on getting involved in trying to fix the world again, on stumbling into people who actually seem to care about him. He doesn’t plan on being happy.

I really, really need to do a re-read of this series.  It’s one of my favorite Feuilly stories EVER and a part of why is because of all the glorious hurt/comfort.  ^_^  But seriously, this is my favorite ever Amis Origin Story.  *_*

the best medicine 

Five times Joly took care of his friends, and one time they took care of him.

I am weak, ABSOLUTELY WEAK for competent!joly fic.  And here we have him taking care of everyone and then getting taken care of and just GOSH I LOVE JOLY.  *_*

A Passion for the Absoluteby @amarguerite

Courfeyrac gets severely injured and turns to Enjolras, high priest of the ideal that he is, for a little illumination. Courfeyrac enlightens Enjolras in return. Featuring terrible puns, romantic and Romantic excesses, and the Battle of Hernani.

Holy, oh my goodness, THIS FIC.  *falls over*  This is possibly my favorite ever canon era fic.  I don’t even have WORDS for how much flail I’m still in over this fic, even years later.  This is the fic that made me utterly and completely fall in love with Enjolras and Courfeyrac, as friends, as lovers, as EVERYTHING.  And there’s just SO. MUCH. BEAUTIFUL. HURT/COMFORT.  TT^TT  I LOVE IT SO.

The Peace of Wild Thingsby @ariadneslostthread

Series of vignettes featuring the Chief, the Guide and the Centre. And an obscene amount of h/c.

1. “Good.” Enjolras says with finality. “Now, if you will all excuse me, I’m going to lock myself in a darkened room for a few hours.”

2. Combeferre sighs as he looks from Courfeyrac to Enjolras and back, “I don’t feel entirely myself tonight, to be honest.” He smiles weakly.

3. It is a quiet, reserved sort of concern and love which entirely suits Enjolras so he is happy to share the sofa and pile of blankets with Courfeyrac, their legs tangled together like some sort of two headed, phlegm-ridden blanket monster, coughing and sniffling to his heart’s content without feeling self-conscious.

4. Courfeyrac. It isn’t until he’s retrieved his toothbrush from inside the bathroom cabinet that he catches sight of himself in the mirror, and lets out a horrified scream.

This is honestly one of my most self-indulgent favorite h/c fic.  It’s one of the ones I come back to over and over and over, especially if I’m in need of comfort, myself.  I just love these three so much and I love how deeply they care for each other in this fic and just EVERYTHING.  *_*

All I Have Known by @whimsical-in-the-brainpan

Grantaire’s motto has always been “it only hurts if you care.” Of course, Éponine knows that secretly he’s always cared. But it’s just easier for him to play the strawman than to actually let himself believe. It’s safer.

This is an epically long series of slow-burn e/R that focuses on Eponine and Grantaire’s amazingly co-dependent friendship and JFC, it’s still one of my favorites even though I’m not really on the e/R bandwagon anymore.  It just packs SUCH an emotional punch throughout the entire thing and I love it SO MUCH.  I really need to re-read it, too.  ;D  (Side note: I especially love the characterization of Cosette in this fic.  It’s one of my favorites, to this day. ^_^)

I Know How to Love Only When You’re Holding Meby @kingesstropolis

Courfeyrac and Enjolras grew up next door to each other, with their families so close they might as well be related at this point. So when Enjolras’s older sister gets engaged, Courfeyrac knows he’ll be attending the wedding–which isn’t a problem until it becomes clear he’s supposed to bring a significant other to the wedding. Not having dated anyone in the years since his last disastrous relationship and unable to tell his mother why he’s given up on romance, Courfeyrac does the only logical thing–he brings along his new fake boyfriend, Combeferre.

OK, so this one may not TECHNICALLY be h/c, but it involves a lot of angst and emotional h/c, so I SAY IT COUNTS.  Featuring an ace!Courfeyrac who has put himself through hell and back to get to that conclusion and faces an even steeper uphill battle to accept that he’s still worthy of love and that someone could love him.  And it’s just so lovely and painful and ^__________^.

@thecoffeetragedy always writes really good hurt/comfort, mostly on tumblr, like this really lovely little Combeferre & Courfeyrac ficlet she wrote for me, but you can find a bunch of them here on AO3, too.

I also have a ton of other h/c recs, like I’m sure I’m going to think of a million more that just HAVE TO BE on this list as soon as I post this, but THIS IS A GOOD START, HOPEFULLY, Y/Y?  I also have a ton of others in other fandoms, but I think you are Love, Simon AU nonny, so hopefully these were all relevant to your interests.  ^_^

I: Do you have a guilty pleasure in fic (reading or writing)?

I don’t really believe in guilty pleasures.  I thoroughly enjoy all my pleasures, no shame attached.  ^_~  I absolutely love H/C and sick!fic of every flavor and variety, but I feel absolutely no guilt or shame about that whatsoever.  BRING IT ON.  *_*

N: Is there a fic you wish someone else would write (or finish) for you?

And I just answered this one in the last ask, so a little c/p wouldn’t hurt…

Pfft.  There’s a part of me that really wishes someone would finish FYFM for me at this point, but not too seriously.  I’m too much of a control freak for that.  -.-;;;

As for stories I wish someone would WRITE for me?  *evil grin*  Anything in any of these tags:

dear yuletide author

dear miserable holidays author

dear not for primetime author

dear pr femslash ficathon writer

dear rare pair fest writer

dear trick or treat writer

HAVE AT.  SERIOUSLY.  *chinhands*  ^___________^

SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG, NONNY.  Hopefully you see this.  ^_^

(Anyone else want to send some?  ^_^)

[teamwynn]

The Night Voice Retrospective, Pt. 11

[Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 11.5 | Part 12]

Just put me in my fucking grave, I can’t deal with this.

Thirty Years Under the Mountain (a.k.a., the world’s most elaborate attempt to wound me, personally)

I am without words. I am without them because I have so many that I can’t decide which ones are most fit to express my utter and complete disdain with the conclusion to this book, this series, these characters’ stories that I have loved so dearly for so many years. I am betrayed--in the sense that my expectations as a reader were woefully, almost comically, disappointed; in the sense that I paid money to bear witness to this complete wreckage of all established characterization and every sense of quality storytelling techniques; in a sense that is purely cosmic and beyond the abilities of my feeble mortal brain to translate into linguistic phrases formed of black alphabetical markings.

Thirty Years Under the Mountain, which in retrospect I now regard as the first warning sign of the coming apocalypse that was the year 2016 on our miserable hell planet. It was, if nothing else, thematically appropriate to all the other betrayals and disappointments in the real world that we’ve all been forced to endure this past year.

But let’s get into the problems with this, for as limited as my abilities to speak on it are.

So, the battle is won. The Night Voice is defeated and contained. Il’Sanke, Brot’an, the wraith, the specter, and the necromancer are no more. Leesil planted a tree on top of the Spirit Orb and Ore-Locks shoved all of the other orbs into undisclosed hiding places in the earth where no one else can ever find or reach them. Wynn is blind, Magiere is in a poison-induced coma, and everyone else is more or less fine. After some deliberating of how to heal Magiere (“We should pull the arrow out,” “But what if it doesn’t work?” “Well, it did work, so that argument served no purpose but to waste everyone’s time”), the only question left is what Our Heroes intend to do with their miserable, miserable lives now that the evil has been defeated trapped under a tree.

Well, now that everyone is rejoined, the surviving cast of the book can reform back into Team Magiere and Team Wynn in whatever configurations work best for them. You’d think, given how the Teams has historically shaped the whole saga with Team Magiere leading Series 1, Team Wynn leading Series 2, and them coming into conflict and/or partnership throughout Series 3, the most narratively satisfying conclusion would be to bring at least the core the Teams back together now that the threat has been neutralized. But here’s how the breakdown actually ends up going:

Team Magiere does reform and is resolved to go home. At this point in the book, this is the most expected and satisfying conclusion Magiere, Leesil, and Chap could have gotten, but I will have more to say about this a little later on.

Team Wynn remains dissolved. Wynn--after acknowledging that Chap ruined Shade’s life by dictating “what’s best for her” and exiling her from her family--decides that the best thing to do for Shade is… dictating what’s best for her and exiling her from her family. With Team Wynn now permanently splintered:

Wynn and Chane resolve to live in a fucking hole in the ground guarding the sun crystal staff over completely fabricated concerns that it will go out without Wynn watching over it

Shade goes to live a normal dog life in the forest, despite not wanting to do this

Wayfarer is adopted by Magiere and Leesil. But also intends to keep studying under Vreuvilla. And also Chuillyon?? Wait--

Osha….. is sad??? He decides not to go back to the She’ith so…. what is he doing besides being sad? And why is he sad? Because he almost killed Magiere? Because Wynn never made out with him again (because why would she, you’re the one who stopped talking to her, asshole!)?

Chuillyon is apparently cleaning up everyone’s loose ends for them, by dealing with the aftermath of il’Sanke and Brot’an deaths and the fact that they need to keep the Spirit Orb’s location a secret. Fuck all if we know what he plans on doing with his life beyond that.

The book didn’t even pretend to give a shit about Ore-Locks once those orbs were in the ground. Which, by the way, took away the job he had before this book, so we can’t even assume that he would just go back to work with the Stonewalkers, so his ending is a complete blank slate. Did he devote his life to helping the needy? Did he go to art school? Start a garage band? The book never suggests anything he does do, so those guesses are as good as any, as far as I’m concerned.

Any surviving character who is not physically present in that final scene before the epilogue gets absolutely jack shit in terms of conclusion. Not Most Aged Father, Nein’a, Freth, En’nish, Ounyalam, Aupsha, Nikolas, Hawes, Pawl, Li’kan, the Duchess, any of the sages, any of the Stonewalkers, anyone involved in any of the three active civil wars that are occurring in this world, and not any of the side characters from Miiska--and that last set of characters is another thing I will get to a little later.

So, that’s where we’re at with everyone’s retirement plans. Time to roll into the epilogue, where we get a nice, long reminiscence from Chane about how that all turned out for everyone over the past 30 years.

Well, there’s a few immediate problems that spring out with the narrative he gives us. I’ll try to go about it in chunks so I don’t overwhelm us all. First, he explains how he and Wynn have been living in that creepy cave with the giant dragon skeleton and the bottomless chasm all by themselves for three decades. Wynn and Chane live there for the express purpose of checking on the status of the sun staff crystal to make sure it doesn’t go out, causing the tree to die. Chuillyon and his sage minions teleport in via underground tree from time to time to deliver food and essentials, and Magiere, Leesil, and Chap visit Wynn once a year (except for when they don’t) and they’ve all learned to be civil with Chane (except when they’re not.) Wayfarer, Shade, and on one occasion Shade’s babies visit, too. Ore-Locks built a bridge over the chasm, and that was all that was mentioned of him ever hanging out with Wynn and Chane again. I don’t think it was outright stated but strongly implied that Osha never visited. We learn from Chane that he and Wynn mostly spend their time playing cards, drinking tea, and reading books. Chane feeds automatically off the Spirit Orb. Both Wynn and Chane are apparently relieved to be living in isolation so they don’t have to worry about anyone judging them for their gross relationship. Wynn sometimes still plays with her mantic sight and sometimes uses it as a loophole around her blindness to see Chane. We also learn from Chane that Osha and Wayfarer have returned to the Elven Territories in the Farlands.

Problems:

Why do they have to live under the mountain to check on the sun staff? They don’t even check every day. Chuillyon could teleport Wynn there from Calm Seatt like, once a week.

Wynn and Chane are the least equipped to be responsible for this task. Wynn is blind and wouldn’t be able to see if the light went out. Chane will die if he’s exposed directly to the light. This was a poor tactical choice.

Why is Wynn supposedly the only one who can relight the staff if it goes out? Il’Sanke taught her how to do that, and he had other non-sorcerer pupils who probably knew how to do that, could figure it out, or could be taught by Wynn. For example, Mujahid, who was last seen at the Elven Sage’s Guild, which is where Chuillyon lived, making it a very simple matter to teleport Mujahid periodically to the cave to check on the staff. Like… there literally is already an established character in the book who is set up perfectly to handle this task.

No one ever had a legitimate reason to expect the staff to go out, anyway.

And even if it did, what does it matter? The Night Voice could only be destroyed with all five orbs, and Ore-Locks shoved the other four into the crust of the earth. Even if The Night Voice’s minions could find the other orbs, they would never be able to reach them. And trapping the Night Voice didn’t destroy its minions, ‘cause Chane is still there, so all this entire ordeal with the tree and the staff is even accomplishing to begin with is getting the Night Voice to shut up.

Did Chuillyon get his job back? Obviously he’s working with the Sages Guild (but is helping Wynn without their knowledge, apparently?) but when and how did he get his job back? Does the Sages Guild not care that he keeps walking off with resources and delivering them to an unknown location? I feel like if the Guild higher-ups knew about Wynn still being alive, they would give several unhappy shits about it.

Team Magiere has access to teleportation trees and they only visit Wynn once a year? Those guys are shit friends.

Ore-Locks isn’t mentioned visiting at all once the bridge is built. Am I??? honestly supposed to believe that he and Chane just stopped hanging out? Again, he no longer has a job, essentially, and he has historically jumped on the slightest of excuses to run off and hang out with Chane even when he did have a job. And if anything happened to the tree, wouldn’t they want him there to re-hide the Spirit Orb?

While I deeply and sincerely appreciate that nothing was ever said in regard to vampire sex, up to the point of outright insinuating that Wynn and Chane actually had a chaste relationship, what the fuck were they doing for 30 fucking years? Drinking tea does not count as an activity, and reading and playing card games would get boring pretty fucking fast. Not only that, BUT WYNN IS BLIND! Even if Chane read everything to Wynn, how the fuck did just the two of them play cards if Wynn is blind!?!?!?!? And it’s not like living in a cave gives either of them hot new dinner conversation topics. That would be an unsurvivable level of boredom.

Who the fuck was judging Wynn and Chane for their relationship aside from the few people who still visited them under the mountain? We know from way back in Series 1 that Welstiel assumed they were dating, we know the dwarves in Through Stone and Sea all assumed they were dating, the sages mostly seemed to make the same assumption. Most people don’t even know that Chane’s a vampire, and those that do don’t really seem to have any issues with vampire-human relationships. And this concern has never been raised before now, so?? Why is it A Thing now?

With regards to the mantic sight, please read this post. I know I’m trying to distance my main blog from this one, but I think it would literally kill me to type that out again.

How does Chane know about Wayfarer and Osha’s living situation, why does he care, and why does he point out in the narration itself that it doesn’t make sense that they went back there given that they were both exiled? Since the elven rebellion arc was never finished, we have no reason to believe it would ever be safe for either of them to move back there. Not only that, neither of them had anything left in the Elven Territories to motivate them to go back. And Wayfarer was also living with Team Magiere, studying under Vreuvilla, and starting up her own sage’s order. That puts her living in literally four different locations. What the fuck?

Wow, that’s a lot of problems! Let’s continue with the events of the epilogue and see what else we can find.

Except, whoops, this post is already too long! Tune in next time for Part 11.5, where I will continue screaming about Wynn and Chane’s ending, because there is still so much ground to cover on that topic alone.

[journey4theseason]

Living in the Now – While Preparing for the Norm (Life After Covid)

Many things can cause anxiety. However, one major cause of anxiety is not living “in the now.” Have you ever gotten yourself worked up mentally or emotionally because you are worrying about something in the future? Have you ever made yourself miserable and ruined “today” because you are busy rehearsing a conversation with someone in your mind? We have all done this to some degree or another. I cannot tell you how many times I literally wore myself out by rehearsing a potential conversation with my boss or a friend over and over in my mind. I would think, well, if they say this, then I will say that. And It went on and on. Most of the time I ended up not even having the conversation. Or if I did, it was completely different than I expected. I wasted my time and energy (and my peace) for no reason at all! Now with Covid 19 and what the future will look like can easily steal our peace and enjoyment – when will I go back to work? Will I have a job? How long do we have to wear mask? What does social distancing looking like once we emerge from our homes? When will I be able to find the food I want?  Stop me anytime! And if you have lost friends or family – our prayers and thoughts are with you. Many have not been able to say goodbye. People talk about the importance of living in the moment. We might hear about the different ways it will benefit us. It all sounds wonderful, but how exactly can we live in the moment when our mind is constantly racing, worrying about the past or future on a good day and now Covid 19? Buddha said - “The secret of health for both mind and body is not to mourn for the past, worry about the future, or anticipate troubles, but to live in the present moment wisely and earnestly.” While I appreciate that and I know it is true, let me tell you Buddha never worked from home while home-schooling children, working on 2 computers and 2 phones and wondering what tomorrow holds – and what is for dinner. No disrespect meant but times have changed even though his statement is VERY true. So how do we make it work. Here are three innumerable benefits that will enhance your life tremendously when you live in the moment: Better Health - By reducing stress and anxiety, you avoid many of the associated health consequences.Improve Your Relationships - Have you ever been with someone physically present, but mentally a somewhere else?Greater Self-Control - You have greater control over your mind, body, and emotions. Imagine how much better your life would be if it were not at the mercy of a racing mind, and unpredictable emotions. Identify Obstacles to Living in the Moment – And the Cure: In today’s busy world, it can be a challenge to live in the moment. The reasons revolve around how our mind works, and outside influences. Worrying – do you cringe when someone suggest “don’t worry so much?” I will admit I do at first, but I deliberately remember and practice these two things. 1. Calm your mind - Living in the moment, you calm your mind, and can see more clearly. The reason some problems seem so daunting is that our mind is racing so fast that we cannot see things as they truly are. So, we make up scenarios in our mind, most of which are unlikely to come true. In addition to seeing more clearly, living in the moment will help us think more realistically. Unrealistic thinking is fueled by confusion and uncontrolled emotions. Calming your mind will reduce confusion and calm your emotions. 2. Learn to Focus on Solutions Instead of Problems - Some people tend to be more solution-oriented, and others more problem-oriented. Some of the factors that may determine this are gender, upbringing, and education. If you are not problem-solving oriented, do not worry. You can train yourself to worry less Unpleasant Situations and Troublesome Past - None of us want to be in unpleasant situations or remember those of the past. They can bring up painful emotions, which we do not want to feel. Sometimes  we get put on projects at work with people we have worked on projects with before when they would not contribute, did not care if it got done or not, and the thought of going through the stress and frustration again makes your stomach turn flips.  So how do most people cope with painful emotions? By doing whatever we can to avoid them, and we can avoid them by taking our mind to another place and time where things are more pleasant. In other words, we avoid living in the present moment. Some people resort to doing things that stimulate sensory pleasure, such as eating, alcohol or sex. Others will consume substances that dull their mind and keep them from thinking about unpleasant or stressful situations. Sometimes we believe that, to keep things good in our life, we must brace against, ignore, and reject anything not good. This is an incorrect assumption with profound consequences. 1. Agreeing to be present in the hard moments is simply agreeing that what is happening is happening, and that we are in it. We accept that this is what we are living right now, whether we like it or not. We say, “Yes this is so and yes this is hard.” 2. This “Yes as acceptance,” is fundamentally different than “Yes, we want this.” When we accept what is so right now, we give up the fight against what is supposed to be, and the idea that what is happening should not be happening, and certainly not be happening to us. When we give ourselves permission to be “in” the moments that do not feel good, ironically, we experience a kind of wholeness. There is a profound completeness, you could almost call it a joy, in being able to experience life fully, in all its presentations—even the ones we despise. 3. Furthermore, if we are “checking out” on the moments that we do not like, we are an extra step away from being able to change them. It is counter-intuitive, but until we fully accept what is happening, we cannot move on; we reject what is and as a result, what is gets stuck. When we settle into, and accept our starting place, we plant our feet in the place from which we can launch change. Scary though it may feel, agreeing to be here does not mean agreeing to be here forever, it just means agreeing to be here in this moment, right now. A Wandering Mind/Racing Mind - Many busy people have a racing mind that never seems to slow down. Their mind gets so agitated from too much sensory stimulation. You see, anything that stimulates any of our five senses (sight, sound, taste, touch, and smell) will trigger a thought, and that thought leads to another, and then another, and so on. If you have a busy life, all your activities will overstimulate your mind, and make it seemingly impossible to slow it down. And an agitated mind wants to go to another place and time. Make your mind work better for you – from dealing with pesky colleagues to taking the perfect break and doing less for more money. 1. Give your mind more to do - Research by Nilli Lavie at University College London has found that adding deliberate distractions – a jazzy border on a page or a bit of background noise – reduces distractibility. Her “load theory” proposes this works because attention is a limited resource, so if you fill all the attentional “slots” in your mind, it leaves no room for other distractions. 2. Bribe yourself - The prospect of a treat can keep people focused, but only when it is well-timed. This approach probably works best with an accomplice to keep you from caving early. “It’s hard to fool yourself. I personally love a nice latte as soon as the boring project is finished. I can almost taste it while working. 3. Daydream during breaks - Stopping every now and again to give your mind a chance to wander can invigorate focus. It can be beneficial If you say to yourself, now I am going to think about something unrelated, maybe problem-solve something else that is on my mind, and then come back to my task. 4. De-stress - You might think that an adrenaline boost would focus the mind, but stress stimulates the release of hormones, including noradrenaline, which bind to receptors in the cognitive control circuits. This in turn makes it harder for them to keep tabs on mind wandering. 5. Get some sleep – A lack of sleep hurts our mental performance in general and reduces our ability to resist both internal and external distractions. And there is a bonus – sleep is also important for memory consolidation. 6. Doodle - In a study, people forced to listen to a boring voice recording were able to remember more afterwards if they could doodle. But content is important. Doodling about something related to what you are trying to remember is more likely to qualify as intentional mind wandering, which can help you focus on the task at hand. Do not be too elaborate, however – if your doodles become too engaging, the whole thing might backfire. Wharever is going on in your life, stay in the now - don't miss out on this day we are living..... Read the full article

[journey4theseason]

Living in the Now – While Preparing for the Norm (Preparing for Life After Covid) Many things can cause anxiety. However, one major cause of anxiety is not living “in the now.” Have you ever gotten yourself worked up mentally or emotionally because you are worrying about something in the future? Have you ever made yourself miserable and ruined “today” because you are busy rehearsing a conversation with someone in your mind? We have all done this to some degree or another. I cannot tell you how many times I literally wore myself out by rehearsing a potential conversation with my boss or a friend over and over in my mind. I would think, well, if they say this, then I will say that. And It went on and on. Most of the time I ended up not even having the conversation. Or if I did, it was completely different than I expected. I wasted my time and energy (and my peace) for no reason at all! Now with Covid 19 and what the future will look like can easily steal our peace and enjoyment – when will I go back to work? Will I have a job? How long do we have to wear mask? What does social distancing looking like once we emerge from our homes? When will I be able to find the food I want?  Stop me anytime! And if you have lost friends or family – our prayers and thoughts are with you. Many have not been able to say goodbye. People talk about the importance of living in the moment. We might hear about the different ways it will benefit us. It all sounds wonderful, but how exactly can we live in the moment when our mind is constantly racing, worrying about the past or future on a good day and now Covid 19? Buddha said - “The secret of health for both mind and body is not to mourn for the past, worry about the future, or anticipate troubles, but to live in the present moment wisely and earnestly.” While I appreciate that and I know it is true, let me tell you Buddha never worked from home while home-schooling children, working on 2 computers and 2 phones and wondering what tomorrow holds – and what is for dinner. No disrespect meant but times have changed even though his statement is VERY true. So how do we make it work. Here are three innumerable benefits that will enhance your life tremendously when you live in the moment: Better Health - By reducing stress and anxiety, you avoid many of the associated health consequences.Improve Your Relationships - Have you ever been with someone physically present, but mentally a somewhere else?Greater Self-Control - You have greater control over your mind, body, and emotions. Imagine how much better your life would be if it were not at the mercy of a racing mind, and unpredictable emotions. Identify Obstacles to Living in the Moment – And the Cure: In today’s busy world, it can be a challenge to live in the moment. The reasons revolve around how our mind works, and outside influences. Worrying – do you cringe when someone suggest “don’t worry so much?” I will admit I do at first, but I deliberately remember and practice these two things. 1. Calm your mind - Living in the moment, you calm your mind, and can see more clearly. The reason some problems seem so daunting is that our mind is racing so fast that we cannot see things as they truly are. So, we make up scenarios in our mind, most of which are unlikely to come true. In addition to seeing more clearly, living in the moment will help us think more realistically. Unrealistic thinking is fueled by confusion and uncontrolled emotions. Calming your mind will reduce confusion and calm your emotions. 2. Learn to Focus on Solutions Instead of Problems - Some people tend to be more solution-oriented, and others more problem-oriented. Some of the factors that may determine this are gender, upbringing, and education. If you are not problem-solving oriented, do not worry. You can train yourself to worry less Unpleasant Situations and Troublesome Past - None of us want to be in unpleasant situations or remember those of the past. They can bring up painful emotions, which we do not want to feel. Sometimes  we get put on projects at work with people we have worked on projects with before when they would not contribute, did not care if it got done or not, and the thought of going through the stress and frustration again makes your stomach turn flips.  So how do most people cope with painful emotions? By doing whatever we can to avoid them, and we can avoid them by taking our mind to another place and time where things are more pleasant. In other words, we avoid living in the present moment. Some people resort to doing things that stimulate sensory pleasure, such as eating, alcohol or sex. Others will consume substances that dull their mind and keep them from thinking about unpleasant or stressful situations. Sometimes we believe that, to keep things good in our life, we must brace against, ignore, and reject anything not good. This is an incorrect assumption with profound consequences. 1. Agreeing to be present in the hard moments is simply agreeing that what is happening is happening, and that we are in it. We accept that this is what we are living right now, whether we like it or not. We say, “Yes this is so and yes this is hard.” 2. This “Yes as acceptance,” is fundamentally different than “Yes, we want this.” When we accept what is so right now, we give up the fight against what is supposed to be, and the idea that what is happening should not be happening, and certainly not be happening to us. When we give ourselves permission to be “in” the moments that do not feel good, ironically, we experience a kind of wholeness. There is a profound completeness, you could almost call it a joy, in being able to experience life fully, in all its presentations—even the ones we despise. 3. Furthermore, if we are “checking out” on the moments that we do not like, we are an extra step away from being able to change them. It is counter-intuitive, but until we fully accept what is happening, we cannot move on; we reject what is and as a result, what is gets stuck. When we settle into, and accept our starting place, we plant our feet in the place from which we can launch change. Scary though it may feel, agreeing to be here does not mean agreeing to be here forever, it just means agreeing to be here in this moment, right now. A Wandering Mind/Racing Mind - Many busy people have a racing mind that never seems to slow down. Their mind gets so agitated from too much sensory stimulation. You see, anything that stimulates any of our five senses (sight, sound, taste, touch, and smell) will trigger a thought, and that thought leads to another, and then another, and so on. If you have a busy life, all your activities will overstimulate your mind, and make it seemingly impossible to slow it down. And an agitated mind wants to go to another place and time. Make your mind work better for you – from dealing with pesky colleagues to taking the perfect break and doing less for more money. 1. Give your mind more to do - Research by Nilli Lavie at University College London has found that adding deliberate distractions – a jazzy border on a page or a bit of background noise – reduces distractibility. Her “load theory” proposes this works because attention is a limited resource, so if you fill all the attentional “slots” in your mind, it leaves no room for other distractions. 2. Bribe yourself - The prospect of a treat can keep people focused, but only when it is well-timed. This approach probably works best with an accomplice to keep you from caving early. “It’s hard to fool yourself. I personally love a nice latte as soon as the boring project is finished. I can almost taste it while working. 3. Daydream during breaks - Stopping every now and again to give your mind a chance to wander can invigorate focus. It can be beneficial If you say to yourself, now I am going to think about something unrelated, maybe problem-solve something else that is on my mind, and then come back to my task. 4. De-stress - You might think that an adrenaline boost would focus the mind, but stress stimulates the release of hormones, including noradrenaline, which bind to receptors in the cognitive control circuits. This in turn makes it harder for them to keep tabs on mind wandering. 5. Get some sleep – A lack of sleep hurts our mental performance in general and reduces our ability to resist both internal and external distractions. And there is a bonus – sleep is also important for memory consolidation. 6. Doodle - In a study, people forced to listen to a boring voice recording were able to remember more afterwards if they could doodle. But content is important. Doodling about something related to what you are trying to remember is more likely to qualify as intentional mind wandering, which can help you focus on the task at hand. Do not be too elaborate, however – if your doodles become too engaging, the whole thing might backfire. Wharever is going on in your life, stay in the now - don't miss out on this day we are living..... Read the full article