My beloved father, my Valentine forever, passed away unexpectedly on January 29th; today was his 91st birthday. I had just been to visit him at home in Jamaica, and within ten days of my return he left us – my sister, brother and me – during an overnight hospital stay. I will forever cherish his memory and my last visit with him.

There were many moments before I left for our visit that I might have thrown in the towel because of travel restrictions, my own trepidation about traveling during a pandemic, the numerous stumbles getting Covid tests (Was it the test date or the diagnosis date that was required? Did it have to be a PCR or could it be a rapid test?), Would my plane actually take off during an unprecedented number of flight cancellations?

These questions and more clawed at me. But something kept telling me to carry on and every second of doubt was met with a steady resolve to stay present, to get everything done, and to get there, for what I didn’t know would be my last visit. My gut, my intuition won me over because I was present to a feeling that said, “You want to see your father; it’s been two years since you saw him in the flesh; you miss him, you want to go.”  I remained present to my feelings, above the din of my doubting voice.  From my view, following this urge was the greatest gift ever.  A moment of presence can change your life.

Photo Credit: millian/iStock

Life moves very fast.  Blink and you may miss something great! What does Oprah do to stay present?  You’ll be pleasantly surprised!

How do you practice presence?  How has it made a difference for you?  We’d love to hear from you!  So, please get in touch at Food For The Soul.  Trust your intuition, my friends, and most of all, be WELL!

Wholeheartedly,
Your Food For The Soul Team