The Now

I’ve been reading books. I am well on my way to conquering my pursuit to reach my quota this year.

I don’t have a set number yet. My quota will be however many books I will read by midnight, December 31, 2023. And I will be pleasantly surprised once I count them all, at which time I will post the number for the world to see, and I will act like it was my sole purpose to reach that number.

Something I read the other day hit me like a ton of books. (I almost said a ton of bricks, but a ton is still a ton, no matter what the ton consists of. And since we’re talking about books…)

Here’s the quote:
“We fret so much about where we’ve been and where we’re going that we don’t take enough time to see where we’re at right now.”

I lifted my hand. That was me. The author had just described me to a tee.

Goals are important. They are necessary. So are dreams. Destinations are vital. You have to know where you’re going, or else you might end up where you don’t want to be.

But sometimes, I get caught up in what happened or what could happen, and I don’t realize I’m missing now.

It’s important to remember the past. George Santayana is the man who wrote the now-popular phrase, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” I don’t want to forget lessons learned. I don’t want to forget what has made me who I am.

I think about the future. I’m not starry-eyed, but I imagine a bright future for myself and my family. I have dreams and goals. I want to achieve a certain level of success and do good for my family, our town, state, and nation.

But the present cannot be sacrificed on the altars of the past or future.

I must be aware of the now. If I spend all my now on something other than now, I’ve wasted it.

I am a planner. I am not proficient in spontaneity.

We took a trip out West a couple of years ago, and I had every hotel, gas station, restaurant, and possible emergency bathroom stop planned out.

We prepared for the trip. We had our vehicle inspected before we left and were told it could make the trip just fine. We had him look at the tires. He said they would be just fine.

He was wrong. In the middle of Arizona, at 7:15 p.m., one of the tires blew. It was January, dark and cold. And it took three hours to get an all-night towing service to help us change it. It was the one hotel stop we didn’t make.

But my plan was adjusted without my consent. Sometimes that happens. As we sat on the shoulder of the busy highway, praying that the semis didn’t encroach those three inches between us, we just started laughing, mainly about how big of a joke our mechanic back home was.

We tried to enjoy the moment. It wasn’t where we wanted to be. But we were there.

We took inventory of our situation and concluded that this was what now looked like for us at that time. We might as well make the most of it.

Wherever you are right now, whether you are where you want to be or not, don’t miss what that moment has for you.

to those who are looking everywhere but right here and now,
– Caleb