Do you spend more time thinking about the future or the past? Why?
TARDIS
Now this may leave some of you scratching your heads. This is the iconic and quintessentially British TARDIS from the TV Series DOCTOR WHO.
Doctor Who is a Time Lord who travels through time in an old Police Phone Box, battling baddies and aliens. Two of the most famous being Daleks and Cybermen.
Daleks I could handle as a kid, but Cybermen gave me nightmares!
So Doctor Who can also live in the present whilst in the past or the future—very handy. He also lives forever by regenerating his body, which is handy when his character gets screen tired.
What on earth has this to do with whether you spend time thinking about the past, present or future? Well everything really: when we’re young we think of what will be, and when we’re old we dwell on the past.
Myself? I try to live in the present, although I write books about the past and also the future. Camino is a book about the past, Broken Robot is about the future.
Although I write in the past or future I have discovered that living in the present and savouring every moment is more fulfilling. Enjoying each moment rather than worrying about what is around the corner, or dwelling on past events which I can’t change.
There’s an old saying amongst us old farts:
“The older I get, the better I was.”
One of the privileges of getting older is the permission to tell tales and I certainly do that. In fact it’s a necessary part of getting older as we become more sedentary and spend more time reflecting on past adventures. The trick is not to spend all your time dwelling on the past. That’s what I’ve learned.
So my advice, if you’d care for it, is to live in the present and enjoy your situation whether it’s good or bad.
If it’s good, enjoy it. If it’s bad, concentrate on getting out of it. That’s it—no magic or time travel needed!