Living in the Present

On the weekends I occasionally take a friend or two with me to complete a day hike in the nearby surrounding hills. I end up grabbing my camera and taking landscape photos of all the natural wildlife surrounding us on our trek up to the top of one of the earth’s rugged wave crests.

I usually like to squeeze in a hike just before a hectic school or work week to sort of reset and prepare myself for what is yet to come. My friends and I chat about our lives and catch up as I snap pictures, and we follow the guided mapped out trails on the sides of mountains. However, when we get to the top, just before we turn around to go back down to where we began our ascent; I look out onto the horizon to gaze into the eyes of true natural beauty.

The panoramic view of the warm desert sand or cool green-leaved trees cover the troughs of the earth’s mountainous waves in every direction. As I stand there at the top, the ticking of clocks pause, breaths are taken away and time stops long enough for me to think about only the present.

“Right now, in this moment, one is both the youngest they will ever be again, and the oldest they have ever been.”

Sometimes we forget to keep an eye out on what is unfolding in front of us right here in the present. And occasionally walking out into the middle of nowhere, or reconnecting with yourself in some other way, can help remind us of this. It also helps to reconnect with yourself and think in the present right before life starts picking up again, or when the going seems to be getting tough. If anything, it will help you prioritize and plan for what is about to come without all the excess stress and anxiety.