英文美文：Learn to Live in the Present Moment 学会活在当下
Learning today
for a better tomorrow
To a large degree, the measure of our peace of mind is determined by how much we are able to live in the present moment. Irrespective of what happened yesterday or last year, and what may or may not happen tomorrow, the present moment is where you are - always!
在很大程度上，衡量我们内心是否平和决定于我们是否能够生活在此时此刻。无论昨天或者去年发生了什么，无论明天可能发生或者不发生什么，现实才始终是你的所在之处。
Without question, many of us have mastered the neurotic art of spending much of our lives worrying about a variety of things - all at once. We allow past problems and future concerns to dominate our present moments, so much so that we end up anxious, frustrated, depressed, and hopeless. On the flip side, we also postpone our gratification, our stated priorities, and our happiness, often convincing ourselves that 'someday' will be better than today. Unfortunately, the same mental dynamics that tell us to look toward the future will only repeat themselves so that 'someday' never actually arrives. John Lennon once said, 'Life is what's happening while we're busy making other plans.' When we're busy making 'other plans', our children are busy growing up, and people we love are moving away and dying, our bodies are getting out of shape, and our dreams are slipping away. In short, we miss out on life.
毋庸置疑,我们当中的许多人已经掌握了一种神经过敏的艺术,也就是把我们的生活虚度在为各种各样事情的烦恼焦虑之中——并且是同时为许多事情忧心忡忡。我们听任过去的问题和未来的忧虑支配我们的现实生活，以至于我们整日心烦意乱、灰心丧气、情绪低落，甚至于悲观绝望。而在另一方面，我们又推延我们的满足之情,推延我们应该首要考虑的事情，以及推延我们的幸福感，并且常常说服我们自己“有一天”将会比今天更好。不幸的是，如此告诉我们期待未来的精神冲动只会周而复始地重复，以至于“有一天”永远不会真正到来。约翰·列农曾经说过：“生活就是当我们忙于制定其它计划的时候所发生的事情。”当我们忙于制定“其它计划”的时候，我们的孩子正在迅速长大，我们所爱的人离开了甚至于将要去世了，我们的体型开始走样了，而我们的梦想也在悄然逝去。简而言之，我们错失了生活。
Many people live as if life were a dress rehearsal for some later date. It isn't. In fact, no one has a guarantee that he or she will be here tomorrow. Now is the only time we have, and the only time that we have any control over. When our attention is in the present moment, we push fear from our minds. Fear is the concern over events that might happen in the future - we won't have enough money, our children will get into trouble, we will get old and die, whatever.
许多人的生活似乎是未来某一天的彩排。绝非如此。实际上，没有人能够保证他或者她明天还会活着。现在是我们唯一所拥有的时间，并且也是我们唯一能够掌控的时间。当我们把注意力放在此时此刻，我们就会将恐惧置之脑后。恐惧就是我们为将来可能发生的事情而过于担忧——我们不会有足够多的金钱,我们的孩子会招惹麻烦，我们会变老,会死去。
To combat fear, the best strategy is to learn to bring your attention back to the present. Mark Twain said, 'I have been through some terrible things in my life, some of which actually happened.' I don't think I can say it any better. Practice keeping your attention on the here and now. Your efforts will pay great dividends.
要想战胜恐惧,最好的策略是学会将你的注意力带回到此时此刻。马克·吐温说过在生活中，我经历过一些骇人的事情,其中有些的确发生过。”我想我讲不出比这更精辟到位的话。不断地将你的注意力集中于此情此景、此时此刻，你的付出终究会有充裕的回报。