Here and Now.

There has been a lot said lately about living in the moment and being in the here and now.  I think some people wonder about this and how to understand what it means to live in the moment.  Afterall, there is a great quote that says, "Those who forget the past are doomed to repeat it" and another that states, "The past cannot be changed.  The future is yet in your power."  It would seem as though each of these statements are talking about focusing on the past and the future so they must be important, right?  Yet we are supposed to live in the moment. 

The best way I have come to understand this is using an analogy of driving a car, which most of us have experience with.  I hope you will bear with me as I attempt to share my thoughts on how driving is related to living in the here and now.

Living in the moment is like sitting in the car while you're driving and taking care of all the many different things you need to in order to keep the car going.  You have to pay attention to the steering wheel, the gas pedal, the brake pedal, the speedometer, etc.  There is a lot happening right there in the car that you have to be aware of to some degree or another.  And these are some of the important things you need to pay attention to.  There are also the things immediately around your car such as other cars, curbs, lines, signs, etc.  Being in the car each moment is filled with many different areas of focus and these are all important in order to keep the car moving in the direction we want it to go and in a safe manner.

Then we have the large windshield which allows us the opportunity to look forward toward the goal we hope to achieve which helps us to stay on the path we need to in order to reach our destination.  Now we can't always see our destination so we have to rely on signs and other people's experiences to help us get to the final destination.  The windshield is very large and indicates the importance of where our attention needs to be as we continue to drive down the road. 

Finally we have the rear view mirror.  When compared to the windshield, it is noticeably smaller.  While we are moving forward on our journey in the car we often times need to take note of things that have happened behind us, or things we might need to be aware of such as flashing lights.  We don't get a lot of information from the rear view mirror and our glances that direction tend to be very brief.  And for good reason.

This to me illustrates the idea of living in the moment or the here and now.  Sitting in the car taking care of all the little things and paying attention to the areas right around me is like being in the moment.  I need to make sure that my actions, my thoughts, my feelings, and all other activities are helping me to move in the direction I need to go.  Sometimes as we are moving forward we may need to make some slight adjustments to keep ourselves moving in the right direction.  The same as when we steer a little here, brake a little there, or add a little more gas as we drive.  This time in our lives, each moment we spend, each day we have is the here and now and where the majority of our focus hopes to be.  Now what good does it do us to drive in a car unless we have a destination or direction to go?  The same can be said for our lives. 

Looking toward the future is very important and we need to have some sort of idea of where we are heading or at least what direction we want to go.  Do I want to earn more money?  Do I want to retire before I'm 65?  Do I want to be more intelligent?  Do I want a strong family filled with love and peace?  This is where looking out the windshield comes into play.  I need to know the direction I'm going and work on getting the bigger picture of my journey as I go along.  I do need to be careful, however, that I'm not spending too much time staring out the windshield while neglecting what is happening in my car and in the immediate area.  If I start doing this in the car I tend to get into trouble.  So it is with life.  If I spend all my time trying to focus only on the direction or goal I want to go but yet I'm neglecting the daily things I'm opening myself up for some trouble, usually in the form of anxiety or panic.  Just as in the car I may not be able to see my final destination as I look forward out of the windshield, in life I may not be able to see the goal I have for myself in the next few days.  The question, whether driving a car or moving in life, is whether or not the things I'm doing today are moving me in the direction I want to go.  That is the question I start asking myself every day as I work on living in the moment.

Now what about the rear view mirror?  Well, that is like looking into the past.  I very well can't drive a car while staring into the rear view mirror.  It wouldn't be long before I crashed or veered off course and I wouldn't know it because I am too busy looking at where I've been and don't know where I'm going.  This is what happens to us when we spend all of our time focusing on the past and what has happened back there.  This is often found in the form of depression.  We tell ourselves, "I should have . . ." or "I shouldn't have . . ." and spend all the time looking at what we did wrong instead of what we could have done better.  This is like driving while looking into the mirror.  As we progress through life we want to make sure we glance back into our past so we aren't doomed to repeat the same mistakes yet we also want to only look back fleetingly to see what it is we may need (lessons learned, efforts put in, what worked last time, etc.) to help us as we continue moving forward with our journey of life. 

If one can grasp the idea of living in the moment and focusing on the many things we need to do each day to lead us toward the destination we have in mind while learning from the past events we have experienced you

can find balance in your life and be prepared for different trials and challenges that may come toward you.  Once one is able to find the balance between the 3 periods of time (present, future, and past) one can begin practicing living in that balance and living in the moment.  Over time, just as with driving, it begins to be easier and easier.  Then the challenge becomes not how to live in the moment, rather how to deal with the little unexpected things life throws into your path.  Like debris on a highway or a flat tire.