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Today's
Meditation:
I think that Hugh has a problem with the people who
focus on the idea that "starting now, I can be a
better (or different) person." Personally, I
don't have any problem with the concept, but I can see
Hugh's point quite clearly--the more we stay focused on
what we're going to do with the rest of our lives, the
less we allow ourselves to commit to living the present
moment for all that it's worth.
"Now is all there is of my life," he says, and
he's right. Your next moment, ten minutes from now,
two weeks from now--none of these things is
guaranteed. And what happens two weeks from Thursday
is completely out of our control. What will happen
will happen, and we may be able to influence it, but we
certainly can't control it. The present moment,
lived fully with enthusiasm and love and attention and
awareness, truly is all there is of our lives. And
once it's done, it will be replaced by another present
moment, another "now."
When all is said and done, life is simply a series of
"nows." How we live those nows depends on
us. I don't want to stay focused on the rest of my
life because if I do, I'm taking away from the potential
of this moment. Yes, I prepare for the future, and I
prepare for retirement, and I prepare for what may come
later, but even that preparation is accomplished in my
present moments, in my nows.
At this moment, you have the entire world full of
possibilities at your disposal. If you decide that
you want to travel around the world, you have the
potential to do so, if you spend your nows preparing for
it and raising the money for it. If you want a
stronger relationship, then you can spend your nows
improving that relationship. If you want a better
job, you can spend your nows learning more about your work
and improving your performance. But please, don't
waste the present moment by putting your focus on some
future moment that may or may not get here.
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