Living Presently
Shower - marriage, living in the now. Stop rushing life. friendships
Apparently, when I saved a draft of this post almost a year ago, those were my thoughts on the matter. That currently makes no sense to me so I'm going to start over.
Living presently is a concept I'm still trying to master. I am an idealistic optimist, so when I go into my thoughts, they tend to be about the future and the good things that are coming tomorrow, next week, next year, in a decade.
It's good to have ambition and to look forward to things, but sometimes we get caught up in the future that we forget to look at the now. The blessings and joys that are surrounding us today, in this hour. I love my boyfriend dearly, but if I focus on our possible future as a married couple too much, I'm missing the blessing that is our relationship right now. If I'm dreaming about sharing a home and family with him, I'm not appreciating our current dynamic, lunch dates, or the honeymoon phase (besides the fact that this is not being emotionally chaste and isn't healthy for two college kids). If you're a worrier, that's even more of an issue, because you're overlooking the multitude of blessings that exist around you.
My thought process during the semester used to go (and sometimes still does when I'm unfocused) something like: "If I can only make it past tomorrow's test, I'll be able to enjoy life" or "I only need to work through these two weeks then I can be happy". I think that's common among many students, but it's not healthy when it becomes what drives you.
Think of the story of the man who pulled a piece of yarn to fast forward his life every time something unpleasant happened. For me, thoughts like these are a gateway to "wishing my life away". It becomes more consistent and then I suddenly realize that 5 weeks have completely disappeared from my grasp. The man in the yarn story would go on auto pilot as he zoomed through those moments, and, in a way, I feel like I do the same.
This isn't a healthy thing to do. Wishing one's life away leads to unfinished friendships and a dull outlook on life. Living presently is the realization of all the blessing God has given, even if that's just appreciating what ever is "now" -- the housing you've been given, food on your plate, security, friendships, a fresh breeze. Life moves very quickly and isn't very long, so why spend it focused on things that haven't happened yet?
There are so many good things right now. Cultivate friendships, dive into schoolwork, realize that the challenges you face are an indicator that you are alive.
Apparently, when I saved a draft of this post almost a year ago, those were my thoughts on the matter. That currently makes no sense to me so I'm going to start over.
Living presently is a concept I'm still trying to master. I am an idealistic optimist, so when I go into my thoughts, they tend to be about the future and the good things that are coming tomorrow, next week, next year, in a decade.
It's good to have ambition and to look forward to things, but sometimes we get caught up in the future that we forget to look at the now. The blessings and joys that are surrounding us today, in this hour. I love my boyfriend dearly, but if I focus on our possible future as a married couple too much, I'm missing the blessing that is our relationship right now. If I'm dreaming about sharing a home and family with him, I'm not appreciating our current dynamic, lunch dates, or the honeymoon phase (besides the fact that this is not being emotionally chaste and isn't healthy for two college kids). If you're a worrier, that's even more of an issue, because you're overlooking the multitude of blessings that exist around you.
My thought process during the semester used to go (and sometimes still does when I'm unfocused) something like: "If I can only make it past tomorrow's test, I'll be able to enjoy life" or "I only need to work through these two weeks then I can be happy". I think that's common among many students, but it's not healthy when it becomes what drives you.
Think of the story of the man who pulled a piece of yarn to fast forward his life every time something unpleasant happened. For me, thoughts like these are a gateway to "wishing my life away". It becomes more consistent and then I suddenly realize that 5 weeks have completely disappeared from my grasp. The man in the yarn story would go on auto pilot as he zoomed through those moments, and, in a way, I feel like I do the same.
This isn't a healthy thing to do. Wishing one's life away leads to unfinished friendships and a dull outlook on life. Living presently is the realization of all the blessing God has given, even if that's just appreciating what ever is "now" -- the housing you've been given, food on your plate, security, friendships, a fresh breeze. Life moves very quickly and isn't very long, so why spend it focused on things that haven't happened yet?
There are so many good things right now. Cultivate friendships, dive into schoolwork, realize that the challenges you face are an indicator that you are alive.
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