Investing in the Present Moment

The best way to invest in the future is by investing in the present.

Everything that we’ve experienced has one thing in common; it all came before this moment. Every memory that we tap into moves the past into the present and moves the present into the future. Yet, what the past and future have in common is that they both do not exist, except in the placement of our attention outside of this present moment. It is only where we place our attention, filled with the energetic charge of emotional regret or hope, that creates a space that removes us from the only place where we can truly invest our energy. Our focus on the present moment releases us from the consequences of the false belief that we must experience distress as a result of choices we made this morning--or even, ten years ago--or the tension of planning what we hope is yet to come. The Buddha said, “If you want to know your past, look at your present. If you want to know your future, look at your present.” I assume that the Buddha knew a thing or two. 

What would happen if, for a moment, or two, we actually put down whatever we were doing, took a breath, and considered how it might feel if we chose to believe it was true that the present moment is where we reside, and that we are fully capable of peacefully accessing it, without the fear that we had to change, or do something about it, or create a new habit, or worry that we’ve wasted time? What would it feel like to simply stop--right now, this moment--and allow ourselves to feel what it’s like to reside in this present moment? With nothing to do. Nothing to accomplish. Nothing to fear. No choice to make. Nothing to do over. 

What does it feel like to take a breath and surrender to everything exactly as it is in this moment? To realize that this very moment is the same very moment that has always been. How deeply can you allow yourself to just let go and relax--sinking deep into your self and releasing anything other than peace?--just for this moment, so we can catch a glimpse of the experience, and know it. Knowing how something feels for a moment is enough to recognize it for a lifetime. That is choice. There is nothing to hang onto. Nothing to make up for. Nothing to forgive. The past has no bearing on the choice we have in the present. When the future arrives it will take place in the present. The best way to prepare for both is to stay anchored in this moment. Oscar Wilde said, “Be yourself, everyone else is already taken,” It could similarly be said that we should be in the present, because there is truly nowhere else to be.