Living in the Now~ Living a Planned Life

Do you live in the now, in the moment, in the present?
Do you plan out your activities, or do you prefer to be spontaneous?

Or rather–what do you like to plan in your life; and what do you like to leave spontaneous?

Re: Living in the Now~ Living a Planned Life

I was reading Artemisilke’s blog today [Have you been thinking more of the past or the future?] and suddenly remembered how life events have caused me to change from a planner to living in the moment…and then, living in the now.

Long before I heard of Now as a word that Eckhart Tolle did not coin, but certainly made one of the most overused words in the English language, my life began to become something I couldn’t plan.



Now here I was, someone who liked to deal with expected things. I read up on childbirth, and the only thing I cribbed about, was that IV that they hadn’t told me they’d use. I’d make lists; and planned out a move that could’ve been made to Dubai, Delhi or another home in Mumbai; only by the three lists that I made, for each eventuality. Things moved like clockwork.

But slowly, my husband’s influence of being spontaneous has seeped into my life. “When man plans, God laughs”, he said. I interpreted it one way—it now occurs to  me, there were several ways I could’ve interpreted it. However, I interpreted it as –don’t plan; because he wouldn’t go along with most plans anyway! We became nomads, moving a lot, and there was little one could plan then.

One day, when trimming a plant in one of our homes, it suddenly struck me. I was waiting for something to happen before I would…buy what I wanted, plant what I liked, go where I wanted to. I was being a person-in-waiting. I had met someone who told me they never bought furniture of their choice because they thought they’d move each year…but as it turned out, they’d been in the same home for 24 years!!!

That day, I changed. I decided to live in the present. Do whatever I could when I could….

And then another day, when I was going through one of the toughest periods of my life, I picked up The Power of Now.

And Now has never been the same. [which I’ve blogged about, enough!]

Re: Living in the Now~ Living a Planned Life

It is so easy to say live for today, and not for tomorrow, however, as the old addage goes, “it is easier said then done?”   So many things have happened that I tend to plan things and think things through as to not to repeat history.  For instance, when I got sick, the low point was not having enough money to get any food in the house, and when I got better, I made a promise to myself that even if I had even one dollar left over from a paycheck, then life was good.  Another for instance…does anyone remember the no brain flick, “Grease 2” with Michelle Pfiefer?  It was the sequel of “Grease”.  Well, there is this scene about 1/4 of the way through where she is rehearsing for a talent show and the male lead character asks her what she wants in a guy and she bursts into singing that she wants a cool rider?  Anyways, I always wanted a pair of the shoes that she was wearing.  I loved them.  Two years ago I found that pair in Payless here in Panama City, but they were not my size.  Ugh!  I seriously thought about buying the shoes even though they were a 1/2 size too big, but my common sense broke in and I never bought them.  Still looking for them and it has been nearly thirty years searching for those shoes.  Is this planning or being extra cautious?
Sometimes, I think maybe I should be more spontaneous like I was before I got sick, but that old common sense always is sitting on my shoulder and asking the what if’s and the what ever’s.
For me I guess, living in a partially planned life is good, but I would love to just break free and forget a few things of reality before I hit the next decade.