I’m not going to do one of those “wow, it’s been nearly a month since my last post” blogs. I’ve got a newborn and I can do whatever I want.
With that said…
My wife and I are futurists. I don’t mean that in whatever way that word actually means. Rather I think that many people live their lives out of the past. They always in their heart of hearts wish that they could go back to ’89 back when things were fun and simple (see: Uncle Rico). Or people allow the poor choices they’ve made in the past define their identity in the present. I think a lot of people are stuck in the past.
Jess and I are stuck in the future. We are constantly talking about how to change, about how we would like to be, about how organized we could be, etc. There’s always a stipulation of course. We could be really organized if only we could get that one thing from ikea. Or we could get up early before our kids got up every day if only India slept better (and I’m not saying these aren’t accurate statements). We tend to live in the future where we have ideals for how things can and one day will be. It sounds better, living in the future. But I’m not sure it is. I’ve found that it causes me to be dissatisfied in the present. I miss important opportunities because I’m preoccupied with how that opportunity would be better if only I could learn to keep my house cleaner. Every day is filled with gifts, both small and incredibly huge. And I’d say it’s a fair assumption that those who live primarily out of their past aren’t able to see many of those gifts. And those who live only out of the future tend to look past those gifts while anticipating better ones.
Don’t get too philosophical on me. I know we need to remember where we came from (past) and we need to anticipate and prepare for our future. There are huge values in both, or maybe it’s better put to say that it’s essential to grasp onto both. But God has given us no other moment to live than right this very second…and I guess I don’t want to lose it.
Musings From The Ground Up
Initiating a new grassroots movement in downtown Vancouver
look to the past, stay in the present, hold on to the future.I think i read that on a bumper sticker or something. But seriously, you talk about Uncle Rico (that side throw steak is still hilarious) and those on Futurama, but what about the value of living in the present? For the most part, those people who live solely for the moment appear, to me anyway, as slightly wreckless and a little bit immature. But how much present living is the right balance? I always get into these comments and the window is so small (no– seriously) that I can never remember where I was going with something.This is one of those times.crap.I'll be back.(Like The Terminator though, not like McFly)
I'll never forget the day a Quaker minister came to our church to do some reflecting with the leaders of the church and she prayed a very simple prayer. She said, "Thank you for the gift of this day, Lord. Help us to treat it as such."I like it for two reasons: 1) Our days (and the situations and people that present themselves therein) should not be treated as commodities to be used, manipulated, or consumed; rather, they should be considered as gifts. I think I would treat my day differently if I actually believed this was the case. 2) Believing our day is a gift allows for a good combination of past, present, and future. It comes with some history, it involves present necesseties/actions, and how we treat it will influence the future.Ok, I don't even know what this entirely means and it sounds incredibly cheezy now that I read it. But I think I like it.
the present sucks man. It's always greener in the future…whatever that means. But i do know what you mean.I hear you met some of my friends at oc! Tara told me you were "name dropping." I wish i could have been there with you! It is weird how you and jess only come to Oklahoma when I hundreds or thousands of miles away! Thanks for that.
Arwen, I think you're right. I think the challenge is to figure out how to balance the value of all three while knowing that today is all you have. When one of us gets that figured out we can write that blog…until then…hmm…we can watch NBC's hit show The Office on Thursday nights.Ben, you know whats funny is that reading your comment immediately made me think of different ideas I could implement in order to better remind myself of the fact that today is a gift. If I could just get a note card that said something like that and read it every day when I wake up…it's funny that my mind immediately went to exactly what my blog was talking about.Andy, first off I'm mad that you go by drew and not by andy. Second off, it's because of reason number one that we plan all our trips around your absence. And number three, you are like a celebrity there at OC. Seriously it was kind of strange. I wanted to comment to all the people who revered you "you do realize that Andy has a secret box collection right? You know that he plays dark room and has a very dirty violin?" but instead I just basked in the glory of being one of your friends from the NW.
I must preface my comments by saying that assuming I say this because I have some superior hold on reality is well… kinda funny. anyway. the balance I've struck is live for the day, keep an eye on the future to make sure the day doesn't mess it up and well, flip the past a one fingered salute.
FIRST, drew is my blog alias. Tara is the only one who really calls me drew so i dont GO by drew.SECOND, half of my oc friends call me andrew but the other half calls me andy because the japanese exchange students cant say anything else so now thats what everyone calls me.THIRD,dont mess with the secret box collection, it's classic! I forgot about dark room! Another classic! I wont even discuss my "dirty" violin with you.
Oh Andy. I miss you.
One of the most precious gifts a person can give another is simply to be fully present. And what a challenge that is!
I know. As I was looking at the Lord's Prayer this week I realized that this pattern of prayer discusses only what I need for today. Jesus also talks about not worrying about tomorrow… That's a very peculiar spot to be in. The difference between being responsible, keeping in mind the things that are expected of me in the next week/month yet living for today and taking only today's tasks on and living every moment to it's fullest and appreciating each valuable moment we've been given. Hmmm…