You have no Future!

Self-help gurus and Zen Buddhists tell us to live in the present, doest it matter?
It matters.

Because when you are happy, enthusiastic, absorbed, in love, you plug into the power of Universe. When you are dissatisfied, distracted and depressed, you are unplugged, and when you are unplugged, you are powerless to create anything better.

Your key to a better life is to feel good Now. Not next week, not when you pay off the apartment, not when peace is declared in the Middle East.

Every moment that you spend regretting the past or fearing the future is an affirmation that life is lousy, and so you get more of "lousy".

Here's another reason to live in the present:
The future doesn't exist. You have no future!
Of course, we pretend it does. We pretend that time is like a piece of string where the past is on once end, the future is on the other end, and the present is in the middle. Not so.

All we have is an eternally unfolding present moment. The only time you will ever meet the future is when it becomes NOW. And when the future is now, it is not the future. There is no value in waiting for something doesn't exist.

It is useless telling yourself " I Will be rich, I Will be happy, I Will be successful."
When your mind is in the future you are spinning your wheels.

Your power is in the present: " I AM rich, I AM happy, I AM successful."
I AM that I AM. The two most powerful words in the Universe are, "I AM"

You are perfectly designed to handle present moments. Remind yourself, " Right this second I have everything I need. I choose to enjoy THIS moment." Every second that you live in the present moment is an affirmation that life is good, and that feeling goodness showers more goodness to you.

The Law of Seed

"You reap your harvest after you do the work." You dig the soil and water the seed (effort), wait a while (patience) and then you pick your beans. Effort + patience = results.

This principle is often lost on people.
They say: "If I plant beans today, what will I get back tomorrow?"
And the answer is "Wet bean seeds."

The law of the seed says: "You plant today, and you harvest... LATER!" Plant beans now, pick beans in four months. When everybody grew their own food, people probably understood this concept better. But this the age of instant noodles.

Fred says: "If I have a decent job, then I would really work hard. But all I do is wash dishes, so to heck with it." Wrong, Fred! If you become the best dish washer in town, someone will notice you, or someone will promote you, or you'll feel good about yourself that you'll one day go and do something you really want to do.

Effort first, harvest second. It's a principle. You can't reverse the process. Mary says: "Promote me, and then I'll quit sleeping on the job." Frank says: "Pay me more and I'll stop being sick." Jane says: "If I had a good marriage, I'd be nice to my husband."

Another lesson we learn in the garden: when you plant a dozen bean seeds, you don't get a dozen bean plants. Fred plants his bean seeds, some get burned up, some get blown away, the bugs get a few, the birds take three or four. Fred is left with two little bean plants, and he says: "It's not fair!"

Well, it's Life.

To find even a few good friends, you begin with a lot of acquaintances. To find the ideal employee, you interview fifty. To find a few regular customers, you begin with a hundred.

Many of your ideas, employees. and even your friends will get blown away or taken away by the birds. This is not something you fight, it's something you understand. It's something you prepare for.



- Andrew Matthews