Dee Davis | Living in the Now

Been thinking about interesting people of late. The things others do that make me wish I was doing that too. I suspect that lives viewed from the outside always seem more exciting than they are. I know when someone introduces me to speak and I hear all the stuff I’ve done, I always wonder who the speaker is –oh…me.

It’s so easy it seems to let our lives get sidetracked into “what ifs” –instead of “I haves”. Our pasts have a way of dictating our present. And some (me included) can let that paralyze them into losing self-esteem. Which is hard enough to come by in the first place. Conversely there are also people who are ruled by the future. Must do this, must do that, and all of it before I reach a certain age or it just won’t count. Again, I find that I am prone to this particular human weakness. I often think why didn’t I start writing earlier in my life, then I’d be like so and so. (Another trap we often set for ourselves — contrast and comparison).

But you know the truth is the only moment that counts is the now. It’s the only one we can be sure of. And I think we need to put or focus on that. On living each second as if it were the most important one. And overanalyzing the past or the future only wastes the precious minutes we spend doing it. If opportunity knocks, you won’t be able to hear it if you’re having a pity party or a planning session. Better to wait, ready for whatever it is life holds in store, and then grab it with gusto.

I’ve always said that my only goal in life is to die without regret. That’s a tall order, I know, but I think it helps me to keep focus, to make sure that when I feel overwhelmed and overshadowed, I can pull myself out of the dark and step into the light–one of my own making.

I think in DEEP DISCLOSURE, the fourth in my A-Tac series, that’s the lesson both Tucker and Alexis have to learn. They’ve got to understand that there are no promises, no guarantees. Sometimes you just have to jump off the cliff, feet first, and have a little faith that things will turn out all right.

And of course what I love about romance novels is that the leap is almost always worth it. But the funny thing is, that I also find it’s true in life. Sometimes you wind up a little beat up for the journey, but in the end, there’s usually something that happens that enriches the path we’re on.

What about you guys? Do you live in the future, the past or the now? Maybe there’s something to be said for all three?

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