I read with interest a recent study that said that happiness is found by living in the moment. There is a certain felt sense that resonates with this viewpoint.
I think it was Buddha who said: Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment.
As we get older life seems to speed by getting ever faster. In part that is a perspective that only age can bring but there can be more of a sense of our mortality.
When most of us are in our twenties there seems to be plenty of time to experience life – we put off things to the future. One day I will … and so forth. As we get older we look backwards and perhaps have regrets (they may be very small like losing touch with a friend). Our adult lives are filled with responsibilities and deadlines that swirl round our heads and distract us from the present.
Many people will recognise rushing a meal or a trip, because you had to be somewhere else at a particular time. Or perhaps putting off seeing your child’s school because you can always see it next time and you really have to get that work done.
While of course there are always times when we need to do something quickly, we can also be a victim of our own anxieties and miss the moment. A famous scottish minister, spearks of the moment that his daughter came in to see him on her first day of school, he was writing a sermon and he looked up from his work and said that her tie was not straight. He could see the dissappointment in her eyes as he ran after her and reassured her taking her hand and walking to school, but the moment was gone. If we are not vigilant for those moments in our own lives perhaps we miss an opportunity to enjoy life to the full.