"Right Now"
Based on Hugh Prather's "Now" from Notes to Myself (1970)

-CHIME- {front, center stage}
RIGHT NOW,		
as the chimes fade,		
I am standing on this stage,
feeling my feet on the floor.		
Sensing your presence.

RIGHT NOW, {walking toward stage right}	
As you sit in your seat,	
Feel the chair beneath you
Feel your feet on the floor.		
Sense my presence.

-CHIME-
RIGHT NOW,		
as the chimes fade,
And I stand 		
{walking toward stage right back}
and you sit			
Feeling feet on the floor.

BREATHE 		
in 	and 	out
Ponder  past performances
Wonder  -  what wonderful act is coming next?
But the past has passed.
And the future has to occur.

-CHIME-
RIGHT NOW,
it is --present time-- {walking toward center stage riser}
and it is right now
Tomorrow at 3 o’clock it will be right now. 
{center, back stage on riser}
On my deathbed it will still be right now.
Since it will always be right now,
learning to respond to right now
is the only thing there is to learn.

-CHIME-
RIGHT NOW.
Standing
Sitting
{walking toward stage left front}
Sensing
Feeling feet on the floor
Breathing
Being.		 
Right Now.

-CHIME-

Long story short: This dance group has used a tape of me reading this for this season and will be holding a dance recital next week (6/17 and 6/18) here in Virginia (in Christiansburg).

Some background:

Two years ago I participated in a local talent showcase and read some poems including a short reading of what I call "Now" which you wrote on about page 73 of your book. I again participated last year (sort of last minute), after having come up with the following (see below). This was influenced by your poem and by numerous listenings of the book (CD version) by Eckhart Tolle, The Power of Now (1998) and by some visits to a West Virginia Buddhist monastery and retreat center (The Bhavana Society). Last year I performed it solo, using hand-held meditation chimes. After the performance, a local dance instructor (who had many groups performing there too) approached me about doing a modern dance piece to it.

The dance piece is very tasteful and, although I've not seen it performed (only in rehearsals so far), there are 8 girls performing it and it has received a fair bit of attention this season (I'm finding out more about this).

The piece will be the last piece at the recital before intermission and will likely leave the audience pondering. Picture myself in all black and the girls in all white. I'll be front and center and then will begin a slow walk, face forward, around the stage, representing clock movement of sorts. The girls/women (ages 13-21) are dancing in synch to the words and the chimes, with audience glances for each chime building to a climax of the deathbed of 7 women with 1 lying across the top.