If we talk about “gaps” in time, when speaking of the “NOW” as presence, what exactly are we talking about? Not numbness, indifference, disengagement, or even forgetfulness. But from the standpoint of what we call the “conscious” mind, these may be the “state of mind” images that we initially have when we think about “gaps” in time. 
Some philosophers over the centuries have pointed out that time itself is somewhat of a “fiction,” in that the past and the future “exist” only as mental references, whereas the present moment itself is not a point in time so much as a breath in eternity. (Pause, breathe, don’t glaze over! If that helps, go with it. If not, wave it goodbye in your mind)
I believe it is true to say that the present moment has more to do with eternity than with time. It could be thought of as a dis-juncture, or yes, a “gap” wherein ideally the mind ceases its compulsive thinking and judging, and another “I” can witness what it is that the mind is doing. As you can see, from this standpoint, there is the curious experience of your “self” as not your “self.” You are observing your thinking. And what a wonderful thing this can be.
The reason why I say it is wonderful is because if we can dis-engage from ourselves as thinking, reacting, and judging our experiences, we can realize that these very things are NOT really who we are. They may be what we mentally engage in, but contrary to Descartes (“I think, therefore I am”), they are not Who we are. Learning to see as a witness of your own thinking and judging grants a freedom to choose to either perpetuate a compulsion or breathe in a moment of awareness. I would call this a moment of “eternity.”
I use the word “eternity” because, as Eckhart Tolle points out, all we have is the now, and the now is not time-bound, in the sense that it is tied to the past or the future. We may “think” that it is just a part of the time continuum, but it only appears that way because we “think” of it that way. Actually, it is a moment of presence available right now, that we disavow by either being too mentally entrenched in the past as an identification or the future as an anticipation.
And the more interesting aspect of all this, I believe, is that this dis-juncture or gap in time, that we always have access to in the moment, what I am referring to as eternity, far from being benign and inactive, is in fact always animated and charged with chromatic vitality! The stillness and peacefulness afforded in the moment, is enlivened with the very character of Being itself.
We talk about the busy-ness of our lives as framed by past and future identities and concerns, and the way in which we are either formed by our past or working toward our future. But what the ever accessible present NOW affords is something so much more than this vacant busy-ness. It is a much bigger presence marked by acceptance of the “this-ness” of what is, at that moment. We are able to appreciate some “thing” perhaps for the first time within its own frame and not for how we think it contributes to, detracts from, or is too meaningless to have anything to do with, our psychological identity.
So, while it is understandable perhaps to use words such as detachment, and disengagement, in terms of becoming conscious of ourselves as not our thinking, not our past or future, it is even more appropriate to speak of this eternal moment in the Now as totally engaging! And, the fruit of this consciousness is what can, I believe, lead us into the space where a universal community of healing can truly be!
tpt 7/30/2015