Cease the Moment!

Isn’t it sad how we always strive to escape the present moment in an attempt to either live in the past or look forward to the future? And the irony is that when this very present moment passes us by, we almost always look back and wonder why we failed to cease the moment. I, personally, am very much guilty of this pessimistic mindset and unfortunate approach to life. We think that life’s struggles and challenges will end once we transition out of a particular phase. And while life definitely goes on, and its endless complexities vary depending on our unique circumstances, we have to be smart enough to make the most of the present moment despite its difficulties, as well as overcome life’s both predictable and surprising trials. When we were children, we typically dreamed of growing into young ladies assuming that just because we’d be more in control of our lives and not be governed by our parents’ never-ending persistent set of rules then life would be flawless and we’d all be free as a bird. Of course, while we were too busy focused on adulthood’s alleged perfection, we failed to enjoy moments that we now look back on and wish we could relive. When I had my daughter, I remember looking forward to sleeping through the night while failing to enjoy some of the most intimate moments shared by a mother and her newborn. I now look at her realizing how fast she’s growing and wishing I could turn back time to enjoy her infancy despite its inevitable and tremendous demands. I’m trying to learn from such an unhealthy mindset by enjoying the present moment despite life’s occasional ups-and-downs. Though we can’t avoid having bad days, we should certainly approach life as calmly and optimistically as we possibly can, thereby learning from present struggles and better preparing ourselves for similar occurrences in the future. Life is imperfect, but our happiness, or lack thereof, all boils down to our management of life’s uncertainties and the attitude with which we choose to tackle some of life’s most overwhelming instances.