getting one step ahead of ourselves

We are always getting one step ahead of ourselves

I find this English saying quite fitting: getting one step ahead of oneself. Of course, if we were to do that physically, we would simply fall over in a big heap. It would be a mess. To walk properly we have to take steps in keeping with where we are. But figuratively, it seems very fitting. We are so often thinking about the future, planning what are we going to eat at the next meal, what are we going to do tomorrow, where are we going to go next week, always the future. And through that planning we take some actions. And the moment comes when we are eating that meal, but by then we are thinking of something else, again in the future. And that's a pity. Our mind is always one step ahead of where we are. And because our awareness tends to be on our thoughts, it means our life experience is always one step ahead of what is actually around us in the moment. And with that we don't really taste that meal. We don't really appreciate it fully.

And perhaps that wouldn't be a problem, if life were no more than a labyrinth that we have to find our way through. But life can be so much more than that. Life can be a series of rich experiences. Life can be enjoyed. The way to enjoy life, though, is to have one's awareness in the present moment. And when our awareness is on these thoughts of the future, when we are one step ahead of ourself, we are missing the present moment. We are not tasting the food that we are eating. We are not really appreciating our surroundings. And this is why there's a tremendous cost to thinking about the future all the time. 

It has its place, of course. I'm not saying it's wrong always to think of the future. But it should be no more than five percent of our time, maybe less than that – perhaps one percent would be enough. But for most of us we are spending the vast majority of our time, thinking about the future, and sometimes the past, too. To appreciate life, though, to really enjoy it, we need to bring our awareness to the present moment, to the rich sensory field that we are being offered by existence in this moment: the sights of things around us, the sounds and smells, the taste in the mouth, the feel of the skin, the warmth, the sensations in the body. These direct sensations are all so much more alive and juicy than thoughts. It's the present moment where life is really lived, where it's really enjoyed. So let's see if we can increase the amount of time we live this way in the present moment, instead of getting one step ahead of ourselves. Life will be so much more enjoyable.