The Power of Now
It has been a couple years since my last TDW communication. Boy, does time fly! I hope everyone has been living a healthy lifestyle physically, emotionally, fiscally and spiritually. I felt compelled to restart the weekly TDW communication as our individual and collective health is now more important than ever. As always, I value any feedback you have.
The Power of Now
You hear a lot of people talk about how they are waiting for life to return to how it was pre Covid-19 - when times were ‘normal.’ “If only we can get back to the way things were, my life can resume again” goes the thinking. First, I would argue that the world, our lives, are constantly changing. Sometimes the change is slow and incremental, in other cases it is quick and dramatic. Regardless, change is inevitable, and as Darwin said, “It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is most adaptable to change.”
This attitude of ‘life will be better once X Y or Z happens’ (time passes, a promotion is received, a fancy car is purchased, etc.) is a fallacy. An illusion. External circumstances don’t dictate happiness and outcomes; actions, choices, and internal attitudes determine satisfaction and results.
The fact is, today is today. That’s all there is. There is nothing to ‘wait’ for, just as it is incredibly sad when people say they will begin to live their lives once they retire, as though they can’t be happy day to day, moment to moment, every day of the week; not just the ones that don’t involve work. We cannot say for certain what the future will hold, nor for that matter, that we’ll even be alive to experience it. Yes, of course plan for tomorrow, set goals, have a vision, but live for today. These are your circumstances. You do not have to judge them or compare them to what you had a couple months ago. Be thankful for what you do have, not upset about what you don’t have, or anxious to get back in the future what you used to have.
The ability to live largely in the moment – The Power of Now – is such a simple, yet potent and elusive concept. Even though in the real world, this moment is all we have, in our minds we are often elsewhere – lamenting the past, or fretting over an uncertain future. Consider taking a moment to gain consciousness of this very moment. The best way is to become aware of your breath which is always in the present. Give thanks in your mind for what you have now – your health, your family, etc. Enjoy what you have now. Optimize what you have now. Tomorrow will be here… tomorrow. One day a vaccine will be available. But don’t look back a year from now and regret how much time you wasted thinking about something that was never real, that was only in your head.
Don’t wait for your real life to begin. This is not a practice run. Your real life is happening at this very moment. Maximize every precious breath, every priceless heartbeat.
