I have a bad habit when I read a book. Before I begin a chapter I turn the pages to see how many pages there are until I will finish the chapter. While I do admit that this is absolutely ridiculous, I actually believe my actions are a reflection of most people. We are continually living our lives looking ahead to the future. In case you didn’t know, I have already finished my teaching credential (I haven’t, yet), collected the $16,000 I need to raise for the World Race (I haven’t, yet), and been to the 11 countries I will be going to on the World Race (I haven’t yet). While I have done all of these things in my mind as a result of living in the future, the reality is, I haven’t actually done any of them yet. Things rarely go according to plan and will definitely not go according to how I imagined them to be. The problem is not in preparing for the future, but completely missing out on the present, especially the process. I believe oftentimes the journey is more important than actually arriving at the destination. For example, I am a marathon runner. While I find the moment of crossing the finish line to be exhilarating, the truth is that the journey of waking up early in the morning to run in solitude in the pouring rain teaches me more than crossing the finish line does. The process is more important than the destination. It seems as though everything in life turns into a waiting game. We are always waiting for more exciting events to happen that are in the future. As children, we wait to finish our school days so we can play. As a teenager we wait to get our drivers license so we go become more independent. In college we once again find ourselves looking to the future to get that diploma. Then we wait to get an amazing job. We look on into marriage, then kids, then we can’t wait until the next chapter comes with retirement. If we continually look toward the future, we can miss out on the beauty that God has given us on a daily basis. As boring and monotonous as it may seem, embrace the process because that is where you learn and grow the most.
One Vietnamese Buddhist monk compared life to a cup of tea stating, “Only in the present can you savor the aroma, taste the sweetness, appreciate the delicacy. If you are ruminating about the past or worrying about the future, you will completely miss the experience of enjoying the cup of tea. You will look down at the cup, and the tea will be gone”. (Thich Nhat)
Life is like that cup of tea. Enjoy the moment, yes, all of them, because all you have is right in front of you. Embrace the journey.
