Learn to Live in the Present Moment

by Richard Carlson

To a large degree，the measure of our peace of mind is determined by how much we are able to live in the present moment.Irrespective of what happened yesterday or last year，and what may or may not happen tomorrow，the present moment is where you are --always.

Without question，many of us have mastered the neurotic1) art of spending much of our lives worrying about a variety of things --all at once.We allow past problems and future concerns to dominate our present moments，so much so that we end up anxious，frustrated，depressed，and hopeless.On the flip side，we also postpone our gratification，our stated priorities2)，and our happiness，often convincing ourselves that ‘someday’ will be better than today.Unfortunately，the same mental dynamics3) that tell us to look toward the future will only repeat themselves so that ‘someday ’never actually arrives.John Lennon once said，‘Life is what’s happening while we’re busy making other plans.’When we’re busy making ‘other plans’，our children are busy growing up，the people we love are moving away and dying，our bodies are getting out of shape，and our dreams are slipping away.In short，we miss out4) on life.

Many people live as if life were a dress rehearsal5) for some later date.It isn’t.In fact，no one has a guarantee that he or she will be here tomorrow.Now is the only time we have，and the only time that we have any control over.When our attention is in the present moment，we push fear from our minds.Fear is the concern over events that might happen in the future--we won’ t have enough money，our children will get into trouble，we will get old and die，whatever.

To combat fear，the best strategy6) is to learn to bring your attention back to the present.Mark Twain said，‘I have been through some terrible things in my life，some of which actually happened.I don’t think I can say it any better.Practice keeping your attention on the here and now.Your efforts will pay great dividends7).

我們內(nèi)心是否平和在很大程度上是由我們是否能生活在現(xiàn)實(shí)之中所決定的。不管昨天或去年發(fā)生了什么，不管明天可能發(fā)生或不發(fā)生什么，現(xiàn)實(shí)才是你時(shí)時(shí)刻刻所在之處。

毫無(wú)疑問(wèn)，我們很多人掌握了一種神經(jīng)兮兮的藝術(shù)，即把生活中的大部分時(shí)間花在為種種事情擔(dān)心憂慮上---而且常常是同時(shí)憂慮許多事情。我們聽(tīng)?wèi){過(guò)去的麻煩和未來(lái)的擔(dān)心控制我們此時(shí)此刻的生活，以致我們整日焦慮不安，萎靡不振，甚至沮喪絕望。而另一方面我們又推遲我們的滿足感，推遲我們應(yīng)優(yōu)先考慮的事情，推遲我們的幸福感，常常說(shuō)服自己“有朝一日”會(huì)比今天更好。不幸的是，如此告誡我們朝前看的大腦動(dòng)力只能重復(fù)來(lái)重復(fù)去，以致“有朝一日”永遠(yuǎn)不會(huì)真正來(lái)臨。約翰?列農(nóng)曾經(jīng)說(shuō)過(guò)：“生活就是當(dāng)我們忙于制定別的計(jì)劃時(shí)發(fā)生的事。”當(dāng)我們忙于制定種種“別的計(jì)劃”時(shí)，我們的孩子在忙于長(zhǎng)大，我們摯愛(ài)的人離去了甚至快去世了，我們的體型變樣了，而我們的夢(mèng)想也在悄然溜走了。一句話，我們錯(cuò)過(guò)了生活。

許多人的生活好像是某個(gè)未來(lái)日子的彩排。并非如此。事實(shí)上，沒(méi)人能保證他或她明天肯定還活著。現(xiàn)在是我們所擁有的惟一時(shí)間，現(xiàn)在也是我們能控制的惟一時(shí)間。當(dāng)我們將注意力放在此時(shí)此刻時(shí)，我們就將恐懼置于腦后。恐懼就是我們擔(dān)憂某些事情會(huì)在未來(lái)發(fā)生---我們不會(huì)有足夠的錢(qián)，我們的孩子會(huì)惹上麻煩，我們會(huì)變老，會(huì)死去，諸如此類(lèi)。

若要克服恐懼心理，最佳策略便是學(xué)會(huì)將你的注意力拉回此時(shí)此刻。馬克?吐溫說(shuō)過(guò)：“我經(jīng)歷過(guò)生活中一些可怕的事情，有些的確發(fā)生過(guò)。”我想我說(shuō)不出比這更具內(nèi)涵的話。經(jīng)常將注意力集中于此情此景、此時(shí)此刻，你的努力終會(huì)有豐厚的報(bào)償。