Future

As a child, we were often taught to “work hard” for a bright future, to give up what we could enjoy in this moment so that all our efforts translate to building up for something distant. While I would not be so extreme to say that we are all building sand castles, why can’t we have both? That is, to fully savor what we can hold firmly in our hands now, while also have a clear working path for a future that we truly aspire for? Why should it be rendered into a binary choice? Most importantly, why should the future be always elevated while the present is often sacrificed?

This revelation came to me when I was birding in the beautiful Skagit Valley. When rushing to a spot for short-ear owls, I passed by a troupe of swans relaxing on a vast field (that used to be tulips!). It was a beautiful scene by itself, but my mind was so full of the rare owls that I just drove past. Granted, the road was narrow and it was not straighforward to pull over and view. But it was mainly because my mind was too full to process what was in front of me. It was only hours later that I realized that I’ve traded what I could hold with some non-existing illusions.

This teaches me an important lesson: that we only have now, and it is precisely in this now that we dwell. This revelation doesn’t mean that I will push all goals aside and just indulge in what’s in front of me. Rather, it forces me to not discount something tangible relative to an intangible desire.