When we aim for something new or different in our future, we create a duality, like we are living a double life.
Firstly, there is this life that we are living now, and secondly, the life we are living in the future. It is important to note that the present life is the most important, as all other lives are anchored here. From the present we remember the past, and from the present we imagine the future. Therefore, the past is no more real than the future.
The past is an image in our minds of how we perceive an earlier moment, while the future is also an image of how we perceive the future. Neither is especially “real” since they are like looking at a photograph. Yet we can still consider them to be “valid”, at least to us.
Both images can be manipulated by the mind in the present, yet if you were not a mind in this present moment (i.e. dead), both images would fall into oblivion. While events in the past may have happened without you around to now remember them, your personal experience of the past dies with you. And simultaneously, so does the future you imagine.
When you imagine a different future, you turn your gaze in that direction and aim yourself in the present, towards that future. The more details you are imagining, the more accurate your aim. By “acting as if”, you already have that future and you simply accelerate the path between these two lives.
However, in doing this, you can also deny the present moment, which in terms of your overall destiny is perfect. Focussing intently on a photograph of the future is no different to focussing on a photograph of your past. Either way, by doing that, you are no longer watching the road in front of you, noticing the setting sun, or feeling the touch of a friend.
To focus on the future entirely is to deny the experience of now. It means you are actively deleting the wonderful experience of the present from your future remembered past. You are actively deleting the people and experiences you are having now. And it also means that for now, you are living a fantasy created in the mind. You are not living a real life, but a trapping of the mind.
In cementing your path to this future, you remove yourself from other possibilities, from magical experiences, from other destinies that may have been yours. In fact, you remove yourself from the glory of the world that has always been there, if only you were looking.
If you must aim for a different life, take a look at that “photo” no more than once a day. The same way you would set your compass bearing on a distant mountain at the start of a day of trekking. Then walk towards that mountain, enjoying the flowers, the views, the stony paths, and your travelling companions on your way.
Do not miss out on living your real life in favour of a fantasy.
Photo Credits:
Mirror photo by lucas souza from Pexel
Desert road photo by Nextvoyage from Pexels
Autumn path photo by Pixabay from Pexels
Wendy Maddison (Writer) 
bravo!
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Awesome Wendy! I needed to read this today, with everything going on in my life right now. It’s so true!
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Thanks. So glad you’ve found it useful 😃
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Great post. Thank you. what if we discovered that Fate is nothing more than witnessing a memory from the future…
By being fully in the present, we can see for miles!!
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Absolutely! When you start really thinking about these things, it starts to warp your mind and your understanding of our lives. Thanks so much for reading and commenting 😃💕
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Excellent Read Wendy
Why so many try to reciprocate their actions of having to plan every awakening moment of life is beyond on me . The fact is when you live in the moment for that moment your experiencing Life and euphoria it gives .
“Sometimes just need to go with the flow and see where the road takes you.”
Reach for the Stars and let yourself see the wonders of God’s creation molded by his hands.
Slainte
Alex
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Exactly. I’ve always found the times in my life when I stop planning and just follow my feet to be the most amazing. We make big plans, but in the process miss out on the better plans God has in store for us. How could we imagine that our tiny minds could out-imagine the creator of this amazing universe 😁
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I know it was a lot to take in and to read so surreal events I did give you heads up Wendy .
Slainte
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Powerful thoughts, thank you, Wendy.
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Thank you. Glad you liked it 😁
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Wow! Just wow! To be in the NOW moment takes practice and in order to change to move in a different direction, also takes practice. By taking the “feeling” of what we wish to obtain with us into the NOW moment, being aware of this moment, in doing so we not only live in the present but we are also forging a different Way for our future. That then becomes “Flow” to the which, magic seems to unfold by effortlessly bringing us to the shores of a New Land. Brilliant writing, Wendy! You really moved me this morning!!
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Thank you SO much 😁 That makes me so happy! And yes, our power to change everything is entirely in the moment. In the wonderful now 💞
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XOXO
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I think our attempts at camp prove this, we all set a goal in the future, achieved towards that goal but needed to focus on the present until we can again reset our goals. Thinking of you.
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Yes, I found that interesting at Camp too. Common doctrine (like The Secret etc) says we just need to focus on the end goal. But if you don’t put in the day to day work, in the moment/now, we are kidding ourselves. Thank you for reading, and your kind thoughts 💖
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Love this! I think, too, that the path to the future you’re so intent on following STARTS right here & now – and if you’re not paying attention, you’ll miss the turn you were supposed to take… it was back there, by the way… but that’s ok; the universe will work you back around to it.
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Exactly! And yes, the universe will bring you back, time and time again, until you take that turn! Thank you! 💕😃
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What a brilliant post! It really strikes a chord with me as I’m not living in the place I want to be living… but at the same time, there are some things about this place that I truly love. I find it challenging to make plans for the future and to get excited about them and at the same time appreciate what I have right here and now. But as you point out so beautifully, if we forsake living in the moment, that’s it. Life… gone!
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I’m really glad the post resonated with you 😁 It’s a strange thing, needing to stay in the now to change the future. Life is so full of paradoxes. Hope you have a wonderfully mindful day xx 💞
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Be in the moment!
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The power is there 😃
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