You may have noticed that being a human is pretty fascinating, often confusing, frequently absurd, and commonly hilarious. One frequent source of amusement to me has to do with a particular ability of our human mind to do three interesting things: to remember, to be present, and to future cast.
I, for one, have been deeply encouraged by the trend in the Western world towards both kindness and mindfulness in the past several years. Thanks to luminaries such as Eckhart Tolle, Joe Dispenza, and many others, we seem to be coming more fully into awareness of the present moment, and the inherent power of it.
The trick for so many of us seems to be that of those three points of possible focus (past, present, future), only two of them are usually helpful: present, and future. And yet it’s so oftentimes our awareness of (and subsequent obsession with) the past that keeps us stuck. We keep explaining (to ourselves, any anyone who will listen) WHY we are where we are, as if getting someone else to understand our predicament makes it more justifiable that I keep focused on said predicament.
The future is made up of NOWs, which is the best news of all. Because NOW is where all of our power resides. Nothing that came before is relevant, when the only things that matters is what you do (and more importantly, how you feel) now. It’s essentially the only question the universe is ever asking: What Now?
Don’t tell my why you’re stuck, or who was mean to you, or who inflicted the childhood trauma that obstructed your path to greatness. (Ok, when I’m listening as your therapist, you can tell me as much of that stuff as you like!) Otherwise, I’m much more interested in what now. What’s your next move? Knowing everything you now know, what’s the next most logical step?
Because in asking this question, it galvanizes my focus to this moment and the next. Where am I going? What’s the thing that I want to do the most right now? And in the moments I can let go of the past and stop arguing for my limitations, and refocus on what I’m doing next and where I’m going, my energy shifts dramatically. Now the train can move forward again. And moving forward is fun. Always.
So, dear hearts, I encourage us all today to stay focused on only two out of the three possibilities: Where you are right now, and where you are headed next. And please, for all of our sakes, spend a moment imagining that awesome future, and let the exuberance infect your being. Our emotions conjure powerful magic that influences your next logical step. That’s how we stay tuned. And always, stay tuned.