There were a few instances in my life when my wife woke me up from my thoughts with a question- How is the coffee? 

My answer invariably was- Uh?... Yeah, it is good.

Obviously, I was lying. The truthful answer should have been- ‘I don’t know’ because, I didn’t notice the taste. I was deeply immersed in thoughts and just sipped the coffee absent minded. I was not ‘living in the now’.

I was not even aware of this ‘missing the present moment’ until I attended a personal development program.

Did you experience such instances? I am sure you did. What was the last time you had a coffee at home? Let us say your wife brought the coffee. Let me ask a few questions:

• How was taste?
• Was it steaming or medium hot?
• Did you notice its color and aroma?
• Was it served in a mug or cup?
• What was the color of the mug/cup?
• Did you sip it slowly or gulp?
• Most importantly, did you enjoy it?

If you are finding it difficult to answer any of these questions, you are not ‘living in the now’.

For many, a cup of coffee is just a habit. They ‘miss’ something if they don’t have coffee at some stipulated times.
If you are missing the very taste of it, does it matter whether you drink or not? By not ‘living in the present’, you are missing a lot in life.

We do a number of things physically without being aware of or partially aware of. Our mind wanders away from the present. While sipping your coffee, you may be thinking of an office issue, health problem of a dear one or something related to your financial situation.

Your wife made a wonderful coffee. She might have mixed a lot of love! But you failed to notice the taste of the coffee as well as her love. What a pity! You are not enjoying the present.

Relax. Push out all the sundry issues out of your mind and enjoy the coffee- the smell, the taste…Completely enjoy the experience. Have a little chat with her. Give a compliment. Be aware of her facial expressions of happiness. Just spend five minutes to enjoy it. Heavens are not going to fall if you stop thinking about your office problems for a few minutes. Practise it. Practise ‘living in the now.’

If you don’t, you are going to miss a lot of little joys in your life. Such little joys can completely refresh you physically and mentally. It can make your mind think differently.

‘Living in the now’ prevents you from focussing on the past or future.

Don’t focus on the problems and dwell on them. Instead, focus on the solution.

“Nothing is worth more than this day. You cannot relive yesterday. Tomorrow is still beyond your reach.”- Goethe

Don’t regret the past or worry about the future. Focus on the present. A well lived ‘present’ will turn into a well lived past by tomorrow without regrets. The present moment is what is available to you to make a hopeful future. Don’t lose it or make it a waste by spending in worry or regret.

Many people are so busy they don’t have time even for food. They hurriedly swallow breakfast, gulp their coffee down and rush out for work. Are you one among such people? If you are, it is sad. You are not ‘living in the now’. Your awareness of the present is poor. Your time management is not working. Your priorities are not set/ implemented properly. It is time you wake up and become aware of the present. Once you set your priorities right and follow them, your time gets managed well automatically. You will have time to ‘live in the now’ and enjoy every moment of the present.

"Each today, well-lived, makes yesterday a dream of happiness and each tomorrow a vision of hope. Look, therefore, to this one day, for it and it alone is life." - Sanskrit poem

If you are open and attentive in each moment, you also become self aware. begin to free yourself from the conditioning of the past and the suffering that it so often brings.

With self awareness, you will know more about yourself- your intentions, aspirations, positive and negative characteristics, your behaviour and your response to others. Once you are aware, you will be able to modify yourself in line with your life’s goals.