Estimated reading time: 4 min.

Dear reader, 

Welcome back to Guiding Words.

In the previous lesson, we compared the ego to a mosaic and reiterated that Life was motion, adding that to hold the motion was to destroy it. In the end, we concluded that only by letting go were we also allowing ourselves to grow.

It is often said colloquially that, nowadays, everyone has a watch, but no one has time. In a world ruled by goals and calendars, let’s reflect on the importance of living in the present moment.

Let’s begin with some Words of Art:  

Close your eyes. 

Open your eyes. 

Close your eyes. 

Open your eyes, what do you see?

The world around you. 

Close your eyes, what do you see?

Nothing. 

Yes, nothing but the world around you still exists and will continue to exist whether your eyes are open or closed. 

To realize that, is the beginning of the journey. 

To make peace with that is the goal of the journey. 

Now, open your eyes,

You only have a moment to enjoy the sight, make the best of it.

The body does not know the past or the future because it is always living in the moment. Each heartbeat happens as it is happening. Each inhale is linked to an exhale in a constant moment that is now. It is the mind that needs reference points throughout time and to do so, breaks down the moment into past, present and future.

That tendency is normal, however, because in order to have an impact on the world, the mind needs to be able to situate its previous actions, their consequences and plan its next actions and their potential outcomes.

To use the concept of past, present and future as parts of the equation to achieve a specific objective is reasonable, but it becomes a problem when the mind decides, often unconsciously, to build itself a little home either in the past or in the future, forgetting that: 

It is now,

It is always right now. 

Life is always happening right now. 

Now does not change,

But I change.

Because the ego is very sensitive to the measure of its self-worth, it is often attracted to moments in time, past or future, which it perceives as the most representative of the state of its worth. Therefore, the wealthy businessman who went bankrupt will be attracted to the past in which he was rich and powerful and the young scientist doing his PhD and reading about Nobel Prize winners will be attracted to a future in which he will be celebrated for having made a scientific breakthrough.

And, because the past and the future are far away from the present, the blurry pictures that we have of them are always enhanced by the colors of our imagination, making them, often, more appealing than the present. We always have more room to express our creativity when we are thinking about the past or the future than when we are facing the facts of the present.

The journey to serenity teaches us, however, that the right way to use the concepts of past and future is by using them as part of an equation to achieve a specific goal and not as a mental residential area. After its many ventures into the past and the future, the mind should always come back to where its body resides, that is in the now.

Everything within the material world around us is enjoyed through our five senses and these senses reside in the present moment. Therefore, the best way for the mind to truly experience its own body and the physical world around it is by residing with it in the present moment.

Therefore, after every trip to the past to learn from it and every simulation of the future to plan for it, we should swiftly bring our mind back home, into the present and remind ourselves that

Now will still be now when I am gone.  

But, right now as I am here,

I should take it all in for only right now is mine.

This concludes our lesson on the importance of living in the present moment. In the next lesson, we will borrow the concept of entropy to reflect on the importance of planning for rainy days.

See you in three days and until then, may Serenity be upon you.

Didi

Question: After reading this lesson, can you think of something that is either holding you into the past or into the future?

Reply with a yes or no and feel free to go beyond two or three characters.

P.S.: I am trying to find the right words to convey my thoughts in a language that is not mine, so please pardon my mistakes and feel free to reply with any suggestions and/or corrections that can make this reading experience more enjoyable. 

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