Here I stand
Look around, around, around
But you won't see me
Queen - Now I'm Here
Life is an extended series of moments of now, yet most of us spend so much time dwelling on the past or planning for the future. We go through life deferring our enjoyment for the present moment for the promise of some greater enjoyment in the future.
Setting goals is often done under the guise that at some point I’m the future, when we hit our goals we’ll be happy
A whole life can be spent deferring happiness in the present moment for future joy, and when we reach this point we defer our happiness again.
Of course, life can't be lived without any consideration of the future, education is founded on building knowledge for future use, personal development is always to done to build a better future, even saving for retirement defers some enjoyment of today for security in later life.
And none of these need to stop you from enjoying the present moment, savouring the joys of today.
Life is simply an extended series of moments of now, let's make sure we're living these moments.
I drafted this blog on the weekend, inspired again by Oliver Burkeman, this time his book The Antidote (Happiness for People Who Can't Stand Positive Thinking), then this landed in my inbox on Monday morning from Tee Twyford and I thought it fit in perfectly. Find out more about Tee here, her weekly newsletter is gives me a wonderful injection of grounding every Monday morning: @hustleandhush www.hustleandhush.com
You Reading This, Be Ready by William Stafford
Starting here, what do you want to remember? How sunlight creeps along a shining floor? What scent of old wood hovers, what softened sound from outside fills the air?
Will you ever bring a better gift for the world than the breathing respect that you carry wherever you go right now? Are you waiting for time to show you some better thoughts?
When you turn around, starting here, lift this new glimpse that you found; carry into evening all that you want from this day. This interval you spent reading or hearing this, keep it for life –
What can anyone give you greater than now, starting here, right in this room, when you turn around?
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