You walk into your local convenience store to pick up a few items, and while there, you decide to have the clerk check the lottery ticket that you purchased a while ago. You know that the odds of you winning are infinitesimal. You also know that people do win every now and again. With your shopping complete, you amble up to the counter, pay for your items and have the cashier run your ticket through the lotto machine.
YOU CAN'T BELIEVE WHAT HAPPENS NEXT.
She tells you that you have won. Not first prize, but one of the smaller prizes. The amount is $86,400. What luck!!! And what a fantastic start to your day. You thank her, grab your ticket and groceries and go bounding out of the store, extremely happy, even happier than you remember being decades ago when you finally completed your last day of school. It's shaping up to be a great day, and you start making all sorts of plans on how to get the most out of it, and enjoy your new found wealth.
Here is a second scenario. Same convenience store, same day, and the same amount of prize money, but this time, in order to collect, you have to make a big decision. You can only have the money if you agree to give up your life at midnight. Say what??? If you offered that option, I suspect that virtually everyone would decline the money, in order to save their life, and live another day.
The number is significant. It's the amount of seconds that we all have to "spend" each day. Given the choice between dollars and seconds, it seems rather obvious which is more valuable. So what's the point of this whole story anyhow, Thoughtful Wanderer?
That's a reasonable question to ask. The point is to help the reader appreciate just how precious each moment (second) really is. But it's a difficult task if you're human. Dogs, cats, birds and the myriad of other sentient beings that live on the planet spend their moments in the now, but humans probably spend more time in either the future or the past than in the present. I'm as guilty as the rest, however I do try to catch myself when I find that I am not concentrating on the current moment. Try it some time. Try focusing on being present for as long as you possibly can. You'll probably discover that it is a challenging, but highly worthwhile thing to do.
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I'm settling in at my current housesit, and enjoying my daily routine. It's a pet-less sit again, however there are plenty of animals around and occasionally I even get to be up close and personal with one.
Aside from keeping an eye out for pets, and plenty of deer, I also like to get my daily ride in. Here in Sudden Valley, there is an excellent road to travel on which is low in traffic, and at the same time is a very good work out due to its roller coaster configuration. The other day I decided to duct tape my ipod onto the handlebars so that I could capture the thrill of going downhill. This isn't the entire video, however it gives the viewer some idea. Talk about having to be in the present moment. Especially with all of those deer lurking in the bushes.
living a life of profound acceptance,
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer
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