Now

We don't value now.  We talk about it all the time.  We use it for emphasis.  We mostly use it to separate the past from the future.

Often when we talk about now we have only the fuzziest of notions, the flimsiest of definitions in mind.  "Now is the time for men and women of conscience..."  The concept of now in this instance could mean anything from a generation to a session of Congress to a particular crisis.  Sometimes we use now to mean very soon or as soon as humanly possible (the future) as in, "I need it now!"  Occasionally we use it to bound some time in the past as in, "Now in those days..."

Now has power that, for most people, is unrealized because it is unrecognized.  For our purposes now is the moment of decision.  If we are able to grasp that moment, that now, and use it, we can change our own life and the lives of those around us.  We can use now to create a new future.

In the gap between stimulus and response there is a piece of eternity--now--in which we can decide what the future will look like and decide on the response that will launch that future.  Please be aware of now and use it as it is intended to be used. 

When we are present in our life we are conscious of each now and we use them to create a future that matches our vision.  What is your vision, your ideal?  What will you use to direct the decisions you make in each of your nows?