ABSTRACT
Intimacy is about the quality of an interaction, the nature of our awareness, the intent with which we approach what is before us. It is premised on an openness and friendliness toward life. we experience it whenever we are present to each other, even if only for a split second. Whether it is a meeting of the eyes, a hug, an act of kindness, a moment of shared acknowledgement with a stranger or friend, if we are fully present we experience intimacy. It is not, however, a practice that is outward in orientation. One cannot be present to others unless one is also present to oneself. It is this simultaneity of awareness that makes possible the richness of the connection that we describe as intimacy. It is presentness, temporal, emotional and mental, that energises us and imbues us with the sense of fulfilment that we associate with intimacy.
