The Present Moment
One of our human absurdities is the fact that we’re constantly thinking about either the future or the past. Those who are young think of the future because they’ve got more of it. Those who are older think more about the past because, for them, there is more of it. But in order to experience life, we have to live each moment.
Ayya Khema, Being Nobody Going Nowhere
It would seem like these days, all we hear about is how much better the past was or how much we’re all worried about the future.
Some people are frustrated because the past was better financially for everyone. Others are scared of a great many things happening tomorrow, or next week, or next year. Your inbox is probably getting messages about the apocalypse, or the stock market crashing, the european debt crisis, or any manner of things.
But as the above quote shows, it doesn’t matter where we think more of ourselves can be found. The time and place for living is right here and right now. Planning and nostalgia aren’t necessarily bad, but when someone spends more time planning or remembering than actually living, it becomes clear to them and everyone around them. We owe it to ourselves to experience each moment today and really be present with it. Those are the spaces that life actually happens.
The next time you find yourself drifting off into the past or future, bring your attention back to the present. I like to focus on the senses, like breathing or something tactile. Maybe something else will work for you. The important thing is to experience life in the present moment.
Many people hear this idea. You probably have read something like this dozens of times. Anyone who learns about ways of living, like Zen, runs into this idea at some point. What’s important is your own experience. Just like anything else that finds its way onto these pages, it doesn’t matter if one reads it or intellectualizes it. What makes the difference is acting. That’s how you always know if some idea or saying is really worth the time: if you try it and it works.
