"I'm selfish, impatient and a little insecure. I make mistakes, I am out of control and at times hard to handle. But if you can't handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don't deserve me at my best." - Marilyn Monroe
Whew. Life is pretty crazy sometimes, no? It's funny, because when I've got a lot going on in the present, I get more and more focused on the future. I think about everything that's coming up, and make all kinds of schedules and to-do lists. Okay, that's probably just me. But I think everyone does it to a degree - as if looking ahead will make you more prepared, and you won't be as frazzled as you are now. but it doesn't really help that much, does it? Living in the future just extends your worries beyond what you can control right now. A better solution - just being in the present.
I think that's a Zen-philosophy idea, the attempt to be where you are doing what you're doing, with whoever your with, right this moment. It doesn't seem like it would make that much of a difference, but it totally does. You can't change things that haven't happened, and over-thinking how something might go won't make it that way. Like right now, I keep getting distracted by what I'm going to do this weekend and who I hope to see and what I should be getting done. But there's nothing I can do about that right now.
Staying present will decrease your stress because it will make it easier for you to handle each situation (you can think more clearly when you're not distracted), and because it will make you enjoy each moment more. Think about little kids - they love to experience everything that is around them. So next time you find yourself getting worried or foggy-headed, take a deep breath and remember that you can handle each moment, just as this one, whenever it gets here.
