Time Perspective

Time doesn’t truly exist. We all live in the current moment and we forever will. The past is just ghosts and the future only fantasies. Tomorrow will never come.

I’ve been trying to live in the moment.  I think as students, we are relentlessly trained to struggle in the present for a brighter future.  We ceaselessly chase those dreams and desires, forfeiting the “now” for the “someday”.  Well, I’m not here to tell you that this is all wrong; I’m just here to ponder about a better way to go about doing your thing.   No one can live completely in the past, present or future, and so what is the best mixture to focus on?  Stanford psychiatrist Philip Zimbardo proposes that we keep the positive aspects of the past, focus on present hedonism, while maintaining a future oriented perspective.

By finding and maintaining such a balance between the past, present and future, we can keep our focus on the moment without sacrificing the quality of our future.  I feel that this is a pretty big issue for myself, and anyone else who is considering devoting any more of their lives to their education, as this is the purest form of living in the future.  However, the nature of all things renders the future forever fantastic.  We will be chasing one fantasy or another as long as we live, so we must learn to put things into truer perspective and turn our attention to the present.

No matter how I sprint, time will outrun me.  The past and future should be kept in mind to remind you of what the big picture is.  Lessons from the past serve as a guide for the present.  Dreams for the future serve as the path for the present.  But the best way to arrive at the future is to walk down the path enjoying every step along the way.

With that in mind, let’s make the best out of the few weeks left of summer.  I’ve compiled the availability of the members of the fellowship that have responded so far here.  If you haven’t responded yet, try to check off what dates you’ll be available on, and we can try to work something out.  I’m pretty flexible since the furthest I’ll be is Berkeley.  I have enjoyed reading thekoalaz’s post about hiking and nature, and feel inspired to go out and explore before the summer is over.  So, along those lines, and if our schedules permit, we should either go climb half-dome, explore the California coast, find some other national park that is close by, etc.  Post ideas in the comments if you think of something good.