Between the clashing waves of past and future

Our sense of fulfillment is contingent on how we relate to the present moment.

Whatever pain we are experiencing, odds are, it has nothing to do with what’s happening right now. That suffering comes from somewhere else.

Perhaps the past, aka, the painful archive of our imperfections, aka the rabbit hole of useless rumination.

Maybe we messed up the hotel reservation that we made three months ago. Or we accidentally pronounced a client’s name incorrectly during a conference call.

Dwelling on these past moments only kidnaps us from the present moment. It blocks our ability to feel joy right now.

Is that worth shredding ourselves into pieces with ruminating bouts of merciless scrutiny? Of course not.

Dwelling on these past moments only kidnaps us from the present moment. It blocks our ability to feel joy right now.

Another place our suffering comes from is the future, aka, the enchanted place that holds our happiness hostage, aka, the time when the mystery will finally be answered.

Maybe we envision a phase of our lives when everything is easier and all of our problems are solved. Or we postpone our happiness until we finally earn the right to feel joy.

Is it worth rejecting the present moment just to disappear into that fantasy? Of course not.

Tan, the meditation coach for the most powerful company in the world, frames it in the following way:

To feel regretful, we need to be in the past, and to worry, we need to be in the future. Meaning, the house we need to build cannot be built anywhere other than right now. Any time we are caught in rumination of what no longer is, or in the dread of what might exist, we are lost.

If we are to find our way back to joy, we must say yes to the present moment.

LET ME ASK YA THIS…
Are you living your life kidnapped from reality?