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Be with all that this moment brings

February 28, 2026 Denise Torres
Photo credit: Aaron Tani

Photo credit: Aaron Tani

Dear Friends,

The other day, as my thoughts rambled along, it occurred to me that many things must have had to happen for me to be alive today. Like my parents meeting; that they married and they wanted children. Then soon after I was born I contracted encephalitis. Somehow the care I received, the expertise brought to that moment, the many prayers prayed, my own genetic makeup, and God knows how much more pulled me through. Any less might not have.

But really, aren’t there literally thousands of events that preceded my birth and many thousand more that have taken place in life my since then? Certain events, choices, the unknown contribution of others, and so much more continue to support my aliveness.

And then, if you think about it, couldn’t it be true that for all of us who are here there are hundreds and thousands of potential humans that would be here except that some event did or didn’t happen? Maybe yesterday, or maybe a thousand years ago?

It’s so much clearer to me now. My life is very precious to me. Precious. Something to cherish. Something to love deeply. Something that needs my attention now—not tomorrow or four years from now or when I’ve got things sorted out—but now. Now I see how it is an act of self-kindness to let go of jumping from one distraction to the next. And an act of deep and abiding love to be with all that this moment brings.

~ Denise

Tags Denise Torres
← Thanks from the Men at Deer Ridge Correctional Institution!Reaching across the divide →

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