LIVING IN THE PRESENT IS INVESTING FOR THE FUTURE
Modern commercialism has constantly bombarded us about matters concerning the future. Upcoming days that we all are unaware of and have no control of. Actuarial experts are preoccupied with estimating and speculating what the future holds and how to best prepare for any eventuality based on speculations or intelligent guesses. Time and again, I would always be offered intangible products that will always have to do with my future, from time investments to life insurance and memorial plans. Their marketing presentation has always been templated towards family and personal concerns and a secure future life free from worry. They thrive by appealing to my emotions of being responsible and feeling good for my loved ones that will be left behind once I am gone. Ironically, I who would have invested or will invest would not even be the recipient of the proceeds from which I am investing. For a single person like me, the standard spiel simply doesn’t work, considering that I don’t have a family to secure, and my modest personal investment would be just enough to keep me sustained until the good Lord calls me to eternity (prayerfully). If at all, I am more keen on medical insurance.
While I have nothing personal against those who offer and invest in these “unseen, untouched and unfelt products,” I just find it amusing and absurd that there are those who work so hard and worry so much to the point of stressing themselves to their limits and neglecting their personal well-being just to be able to secure and pay for them, denying and depriving themselves with the basic necessities of our present life.
Sadly, when one is unable to continue, much of what has been paid is diminished by interests and surcharges until all that was invested is gone.
What is the point that I am trying to make? It is the preoccupation that many of us suffer about the future that is unknown and still very much uncertain. Many of us are too driven to succeed in the future that we can no longer provide the needs of the present and the needed presence in the here and now that often make a difference in the future. For what gain will it be if we have secured tomorrow when we have forgotten what we need today? As we say in law, there are prejudicial issues and concerns in our present-day life that we need to face and address even before we can manage the concerns about the future. Live a happy and fulfilling life now, no matter what our situation is. We have the ability to choose the life we want to live. I am reminded of the following tips to live a happy life that I learned in a training seminar I attended years back.
LIFE ENHANCEMENTS
(Suggestions on how to live a happy and rewarding life)
- Take time to smell the roses.
- Take a nap on Sunday afternoon.
- Drink 8 glasses of water a day.
- Never deprive someone of hope. It might be all they have.
- Be thankful for every meal.
- Don’t be afraid to say, “I’m sorry.”
- Don’t take good health for granted.
- Don’t tailgate.
- Improve your performance by improving your attitude.
- Wave at children on the school bus.
- Listen to your children.
- Leave the toilet seat down.
- Keep good company.
- Keep your promise.
- Be kinder than necessary.
- Take good care of those you love.
- Make it a habit to do nice things for people who will never find out.
- Wear outrageous underwear under the most formal business attire.
- Vote.
- Judge your success by the degree that you’re enjoying. Peace, health, and love.
- Be a good loser.
- Be a good winner.
- Be romantic.
- Live so that when children think of fairness, caring, and integrity, they think of you.
- Call your mother.
- Be there when people need you.
- Be someone’s hero.
Living in the present is necessarily preparing for the future. Live a life that is full in the present moment so that we may fulfill the expectations of tomorrow. There is nothing inherently wrong with preparing for the future, but it is essential that we don’t neglect our present. Because the good things we do today will always be connected in making a better and brighter tomorrow. (90)