A Gift | Chapter 1, Presence

We were reclining back in the fancy movie theatre seats, passing peanut M&M’s and a coke slushie in between us all.

The familiar man of many childhoods appeared on the screen portrayed by Tom Hanks. The eyes and the silence of this man spoke of both the respect and care he had for others. There was no hurry placed upon the ones he spoke with, no expectation of them to provide a quick and well-articulated response. If it took time, he had it.

There’s a moment in the film where the character of Mr. Rogers is speaking to a cynical, hard-working reporter called Lloyd Vogel.

“Do you want to know what the most important thing in the world for me to do is right now?” Mr. Rogers asks. “To speak with Lloyd Vogel.”

That moment and that sentiment has remained with me since I watched it.

People are obsessed with purpose. This is not a bad thing, but I am curious if our purposes are misaligned. Even if not, I wonder if they leave us living misaligned. If we get caught up in our purpose of raising good children or achieving our dream career or having a certain sum of money in our accounts and forget the important purpose of today.

Annie Dillard wrote, “How you spend your days is, of course, how you spend your life.”

I wonder, how are you spending your days? Are your eyes always darting about, looking to the achievement of your grand purpose?

Are you able to see that right now, at this moment, perhaps your purpose is to do a good day’s work at a job you don’t necessarily enjoy? Perhaps your purpose is to ask the cashier a question and really listen to his response. Your momentary purpose may be to clean the dishes or sweep the floor or bring your neighbor a bottle of wine. There may be nothing more you ought to do than to listen to your aunt complain about her marriage and her bad back at Christmas dinner and offer her sympathy and kindness.

There is no greater gift one can give to others or one’s self than the gift of presence. There’s also nothing more difficult to do.

Article by, Savannah Morgan | Photography by, LaRue