Sometimes my writing practice helps me come back to the present moment. I am prone to “Gumbying”—at least, that’s how I’ve come to describe it to my therapist!

I stretch like that titular green claymation character: I’m either grasping at the past in a fit of rumination or else reaching into the future where I might play out any fears plaguing me.

Neither approach actually serves me very well. Getting stuck in the past can sow the seeds for depression; getting lost in the future nurtures a lovely strain of garden variety anxiety.

So what can I do instead?

I can anchor here in the present moment. It’s where I actually live, after all.

Writing Prompt

Come on back to the present. Set a timer for five minutes. Write toward any of the starters below. Pick up a new one if you get stuck.

• “I can hear the…”
• What kind of day are your elbows having?
• “The air feels…”
• Write a biography of the room you’re in.
• Describe every shade of green you can see. (Bonus points: give each color a name, as if you’re working for a paint company or cosmetics manufacturer.)