How's the Now?

    You don't have to hide out in an Indian ashram eating veggies and sleeping on the floor to find inner peace and happiness. It's a lot simpler than that whether you are a lawyer or not. You see science is certain that the mind controls everything we humans do and that of course includes our lives. It makes us happy and miserable. It can do that almost at the same time. It can drive you crazy. Especially when we humans unlike other animal life forms are convinced our happiness lies up ahead in the future or buried somewhere in our past. A future and past that doesn't really exist except between our ears. Yet though we recognize this fact, we find that little voice in our heads reciting over and over the same future predictions or past recollections of our dire fate, ill health or worse our mortality.

    How to get this mind stuff under control? The self-help books tell you to live in the "Now", but don't give a simple suggestion for making our minds come back to the present. Here's the thing. When you catch yourself dwelling on the inevitable future misery up ahead or the nasty past you have lived through, ask but one question: How's the Now? And answer that question honestly. If the now in that exact moment is good, enjoy it, dwell on it and be grateful for it. Most anxiety is about something other than the Now. If the Now stinks then it is time to make a change. Time for action and not worry. Most times the Now will be fine, maybe good, or even glorious!

   We have become accustomed to hearing "How are you doing?" or "How you DO-ing?" as Wendy Williams would say. It's the wrong question and forces us to again assess our past and our envisioned future. Better to ask: How's the Now? Stop this second reading this blog and ask and answer that question. See what I mean? You can use the "How's the Now" as your own private mantra. Ask it dozens of times a day; more if you need it.

   The joy of living is too often missed when we neglect the Now. How many times do people on vacation make an anxious time of it? Reservations and planning every moment of the time they have. They return as exhausted as when they left. They have missed the Now of the vacation.

  Whether it's work or play the Now is all there is ...really.