Life is made up of simple moments: going to the grocery store, having family dinners, watching a movie with your kids, going on a date with your significant other, reading a book, working on your purpose, or simply spending time in solitude. Many of us struggle to find pleasure in these simple moments because our focus is not on the present happening right in front of us, but rather on the past or the future. When our mind isn’t present in the moment we are creating, we tend to have a difficult time seeing the good in that particular moment. Just as we cannot see something without looking at it, we cannot see the good in our moment without giving our attention to that very moment. 

I could not for the life of me find pleasure in my simple moments. If I tried watching a movie, my mind would worry about how my mom could die before I was able to bless her in ways I’d always dreamed about. If I tried reading a book, I would instantly have thoughts of wanting to watch porn. If I was taking my niece to the park, my mind would be racing in the future of what I was going to be doing afterward. My mind was constantly searching for a distraction. When the search for distraction took place during my moments, it distanced me from seeing the good in the moment I was creating; I was not truly present. This not only affected me, but the people around me as well, because when I was not fully present in the moment, I was truly not bringing the best version of myself. I thought to myself, If I cannot find pleasure in the simple moments of watching a movie or hanging out with my niece, then I will suffer most of my life, because most of my life will be filled with simple moments such as these. I understood that I needed to develop the habit of finding pleasure in my moments—no matter how simple they were. 

To find pleasure in simple moments is to be in these moments without suffering in the core of your own mind. Suffering in this instance is when you aren’t in a state of clarity, because when you aren’t in a state of clarity you are not seeing your moments for what they truly are; you are seeing these moments based on the thoughts that are consuming in your mind. For example, you can be watching your favorite TV show, but if you’re constantly dwelling on the future and thinking about what may happen in the next six months, you will not see the beauty of the moment because it is being tainted by your undisciplined mind being elsewhere. Another example is: If I placed your wife in front of you but also placed my hands in front of your eyes at the same time you would not be able to see your beautiful, loving wife standing in front of you. This is simply because your vision is blocked by an external object. No matter what I put in front of you, no matter how amazing it is, you would not be able to see it. This same principle of not seeing what is front of you because of an external object applies to how you see your life. You cannot see the beauty of your life and the experiences that are right in front of you, no matter how amazing they are if your thoughts are preventing you from seeing what is in front of you. In order to see the beauty of your life, you need to move beyond your thinking and be in a state of clarity. To do so, you must feel your breath in the moments you are in so that you can immerse yourself in that moment. When your mind is grounded to the present moment by being tied down to your breath your thoughts cannot affect what you see. This will always allow you to always see life for what it truly is – a precious gift. 

People will try to say, The moment I am in right now is horrible—nothing good is happening. My response is simple: how you act in one moment is how you will act in all of your moments. If you find something that prevents you from enjoying the moment you are in now, then you will always find something that prevents you from enjoying the moment you are in, because in life nothing is ever perfect. Life is filled with limited moments. Because we do not know when our last one will come, we should enjoy each and every single one of them. If we wait to enjoy our moments until we have no stress and worries, we will waste our entire life waiting for something that may never come. There is no perfect moment, for anything. There is always going to be something less than ideal that arises in your life. Today, it is your tenants that cause you to find little pleasure during your coffee date with your spouse; tomorrow it is the fact that you got fired from your job that causes you to fail to enjoy any of your moments for the next six months. Don’t get into the habit of allowing the problems that arise in your life to affect your moments, because life—good or bad—is always happening, and we shouldn’t stop living because of it. Don’t think that when you reach your purpose or have achieved financial freedom is when you can start to enjoy your moments. Just because you’re rich and successful doesn’t mean you are immune to life and its troubles. Problems are always going to happen— they are a part of life. Stop waiting for life to be perfect to enjoy your moments, because life is never going to be perfect, but that does not mean you cannot enjoy it. 

Understand that this is your moment! Whether that moment is you accepting an award at the Grammys, going on a vacation, watching TV, or simply spending time with your loved ones. Whether that moment is sad, boring, exciting, dull, or eventful, it is your moment and you need to find peace in it. The way you do this is by being present in that moment with your breath, and by grounding your mind through your breath so that you can fully enjoy the moment by not having your mind elsewhere. When your mind is not being bogged down by your thinking, you can start to notice the beauty within that moment. Go for coffee with your loved one and when you are sitting there, just feel your breath. Only then will you see that moment for what it truly is. All of our moments are beautiful; we just never see them that way because our mind is focusing somewhere or on something else. This is an extremely important practice, always feeling your breath in the moment you are in, because again, how you live in one moment will affect how you live in all of your moments. 

You can learn to be present in your moments by accepting them as a part of your life or you can pass the moment by being distracted. Just remember, how you pick to respond to your moment will turn into a habit of how you respond to all of your moments. For instance, if I didn’t develop the ability to appreciate the simple moments like hanging out with my niece because I thought another moment would be better, I would be building a habit of constantly trying to find a better moment to be in. This cycle of always looking into the future for a “better” moment would never truly allow me to enjoy experiences. Appreciate the moment you are in. Life is always changing, and this moment will never return. I always remind myself of this, whether I am reading a book or watching a movie by myself. I tell myself, be in this moment and appreciate it, because it will never come back. If you don’t practice appreciation for the moment you are in now, what makes you think you’re going to appreciate the moments to come? Even if you think the moments that are yet to come are better than the current ones, what makes you think you will appreciate them? Finding pleasure in your moments is habit-based. You need to develop the habit of finding plea- sure in the moments that are in your life right now, or else you will never appreciate what comes simply because you didn’t practice appreciation for what you had. 

We all have so many beautiful moments throughout the day, whether while driving to work, spending time watching our favorite shows, cooking with our moms, talking to our partners, or even playing with our children. Unfortunately, we just cannot see the beauty within these moments, because our thoughts don’t allow us to be truly present within them. However, once we move away from our thoughts by grounding our minds to our breath, we can then find pleasure in our simple moments by being grateful for them. When you develop this perspective of being present and appreciating all of your moments, you will always find pleasure in your life. When you get to this level, you will live with nirvana— unshakable peace. 

Three things to remember to help you find pleasure in your simple moments: 

1. Feel your breath in the moment you are in to ground yourself so that you can see the moment for what it truly is.
2. Have the perspective to always see the good in your moments.
3. Understand the habit of how you act in your moments. How you act in one moment is how you are going to act in all of your moments.