“I will have the life I want if I am present to the life I have.” The writer Mark Nepo, once again, stops me in my tracks. This is one to think about. Just suppose that Joe (fictitious) is sitting at a table in the coffee shop wondering why he has no friends. (Joe worries about this all the time.) As Joe is staring into his morning espresso, Bill (fictitious) stops and says “Excuse me, but I wonder if you might share your table?” “No,” replies Joe, “I’m busy wondering why I have no friends.” Hmm.
Charlie (f) is slumped in his easy chair in the family room, distant look on his face. “I feel so unloved; it’s like I don’t exist.” As that thought sinks deeper roots in his mind, his five-year-old daughter climbs up into his lap and snuggles into his arms; Bozo, the golden retriever, all the while laying at Charlie’s feet, shifts his body trying to get even closer, and Miriam, Charlie’s wife, calls out: “Come on, everybody, dinner is on the table.” Poor Charlie. He feels so unloved.
Long, long ago, Isaac sat under an olive tree pondering his life’s meaning and purpose. “Who am I? What am I to do with my life?” And, in the midst of his self-wondering, a stranger comes along, a young man with a group of twelve men following him. He stops, gets Isaac’s attention, and says. “Come with me, friend, and I will show you the fullness of life. Follow me.” Isaac declines, replying: “Thanks, but no. I’m trying to figure out what to do with my life.” Hmm, again.
“I will have the life I want if I am present to the life I have.” Don’t lose the present because you are so worried or focused on the future. This is the moment that will not happen again. It is a gift. Don’t waste it.
Shining Spirit 
Let’s be present. I will try. This day will be special. Thanks for starting it off so.