Tuesday, September 2, 2008

The Inner Tug-of-War, The Outer Perspective

There is a dichotomy between two phrases ringing in my head as of late:

Everything is finite.

(Which is very similar to another favorite of mine: This too shall pass.)

Live in the now.

(Something I keep hoping to make headway on but continue to struggle to achieve.)

One suggests that anything can be endured in the present because life continues to move and change... and nothing lasts forever. Hope lies in the future and the knowledge that time will pass, the river will flow on, and whatever life's present unhappinesses may be... it will all be different at some point down the road.

The other suggests one eschew the future (and the past) in order to fully appreciate, be awake in, and participate in the present moment. Hope lies in being fully awake through each breath in every second of any given point of time because to be wholly alive is surely better than to be sleepwalking, hiding, running away, or dreaming of the future.

For whatever reason, grad school often seems easier to get through by embracing the former sentiment. Anything can be endured because everything has an endpoint. It will change. Just keep going and trust it will all be okay.

But lately I wonder if the latter would be more appropriate and ultimately more fulfilling. Sucking every bit of marrow out of each circumstance and experience - be it revelatory, boring, frustrating, or educational. Perhaps my wanton application of my future-oriented maxim denies me the full experience of being in this time - with its goods and bads, ups and downs, hard days and wonderful days.

Live in the now.
Live in the now.
Live in the now.

2 comments:

JT said...

But that's so HARD when stupid Facebook keeps telling you "People You May Know" and they are all your stupid exes and people from the past that you wish you DIDN'T know. (OK, perhaps this is sort of my issue, too.) Send my love to Andy and the Kiddo.

Genevra said...

I know what you mean. It is hard to balance the things that come out of the woodwork without our asking them to with forever trying to move forward without lingering in the past. In those cases, "this too shall pass" starts feeling really appropriate!