The present, viewed through the lens of the past, is often heavy and burdened.
This means that we can, in any given moment, choose to attach some narrative about our past experiences to whatever we’re doing or feeling.
An example would be pain. Pain, in the present moment, is just an unpleasant feeling. It can be as simple as that. But when we analyse an unpleasant feeling through the lens of a narrative that says I never feel well, or I always feel terrible that feeling becomes more burdened and heavy with the baggage of the past. Some part of our narrative might be true, but it doesn’t serve us. It often just weighs us down.
Right now, I don’t feel well. I’ve been struggling with certain aches and pains for a while now, but viewing the pain through the lens of that narrative makes it more difficult to just be accepting of the pain in this moment. The burden of When will this change? Why do I always struggle with this particular unease? or How long is this going to last? can just be dropped. The pain, viewed as mere pain, in the present is less burdened. More neutral even.
The same thing can apply to an activity that we engage in.
Let’s say that I’m trying to solve a math problem. That activity can be weighed down by a narrative that says, I don’t understand this. Or maybe something like, I’m not good at math. Doing math, can just be doing math in the moment. It doesn’t have to be burdened by ideas about our skill level, intelligence, or some distasteful past experience. If we just focus on the math, things tend to be less burdened.
The present moment without the burdens of the past is lighter.
(Also see: The Present viewed through the lens of the Future)