A Story About Presence, Attachment, and a SnowyMorning

Being present has been on my mind a lot lately—mostly because I haven't felt as present as I'd like to be. Instead, I've let myself slip into worrying about the future, especially about an outcome I want so badly to unfold… one that simply hasn't yet.
 

To interrupt that pattern of worrying, I knew I needed to get outside for a walk. That's one of the great gifts of nature: it invites us back to the here and now.

It was a beautiful morning, with a fresh layer of snow that had fallen the night before. The whole world seemed to glitter as the sun broke through the clouds, and it was impossible not to feel a sense of peace just taking in the stillness around me.
 

And then, out of nowhere, a powerful Buddhist teaching came to mind—one I've leaned on many times before:
 

The root of suffering is attachment.
 

Ah, right, I thought as I kicked through the snow. I am attached to this one outcome I want to see happen. Not only is it consuming my attention, it's draining my energy. This attachment is weighing me down.
 

The moment I acknowledged this, I felt my spirit lighten. The outcome I'm hoping for is, in truth, outside my control. The only thing I can fully choose is how I show up in this moment, right now.
 

So I tilted my head back toward the sky and caught snowflakes on my tongue. It made me smile—and I felt more present than I had all week.
 

I haven't completely released my attachment, but my grip is loosening. I'm making space for things to unfold in their own time.
 

I wanted to share this story with you for three reasons.
 

First, it's a reminder of how quickly we can shift our state and soothe our nervous system by getting into nature.
 

Second, it highlights one of the many ways our inner wisdom—God—communicates with us. In this case, it arrived as a sudden memory of a teaching that held exactly the message I needed: the reminder that suffering comes from attachment.
 

And finally, the more we practice presence, the easier it becomes to connect with our higher self and hear the whispers of the soul.
 

Interestingly, when I returned from my walk—still reflecting on the beauty of that teaching and the power of presence—an ad for a course by Eckhart Tolle appeared on my Facebook feed. It was a training to become a Teacher of Presence. It felt like more than coincidence. It felt like affirmation.
 

Deepening into presence is central to my own spiritual practice and the work I guide others through in my coaching and retreats. I've long understood that presence is the gateway to inner wisdom. So I signed up. I love being a student just as much as I love teaching what I've learned. We're all walking this path together.
 

If you find yourself worrying about the future or getting caught in old stories from the past, I encourage you to step outside for a few moments. Go for a walk and simply notice—what you see, what you hear, the scent of the air, the feel of the breeze, even the taste of a snowflake on your tongue. This simple act of noticing is one of the most accessible ways to return to the present moment.
 

And if you feel called to deepen your practice of presence and reconnect with your inner wisdom, I would love to support you. My book, Whispers of the Soul, offers gentle teachings and practical tools to guide you inward. You can also explore this work more personally through my coaching or immerse yourself more fully in one of my retreats, where presence and inner wisdom are at the heart of everything we do.
 

Wherever you are on your journey, I'm honoured to walk alongside you.

With love and gratitude,
Anita