I listened to a video about cultivation, which emphasized the importance of living in the present moment. It seems like I suddenly understand that living in the present means doing well in what is happening right now, without letting the past and future disturb the present.
Many years ago, I was very anxious when looking for a job. I had plenty of time, but I couldn't bring myself to do anything, not even watch TV or movies. When I finally found a job, I wanted to rest but had no time. Back then, it would have been great to enjoy and rest while I had no job, but my anxiety didn't help me find a job faster.
In the future, when I look for a job again, I will be much better. If I find a job, I will work; if not, I will enjoy my time at home. This way of thinking made the job come quickly and didn't give me a chance to test my patience. That's to say, if I really couldn't find a job for a long time, would I still be anxious? I don't know.
The example above is just living in the present, which is indeed very beneficial.
Another example is when I was at work with a heavy workload, I used to rush to finish a task and think about the next one. This was very stressful. Later, the words of actress Qin Yi enlightened me: as long as you do one task at a time, it's enough. If you can't finish it, it's fine. What's the big deal? After that, I found that work was not tiring anymore, and the results were quite good, with very few mistakes. This is also an example of living in the present moment. No wonder Qin Yi could live to be 100 years old.
This week, I watched another TV series "Manhunt" (2019-2021), not the Japanese movie "Manhunt", but a British TV series. It is about a detective who is about to retire and is afraid of retirement as he is a workaholic. His last case is to catch a serial rapist who had been on the run for 17 years. The case is finally solved, but the unrest in his heart outweighs the joy of his detective success because he doesn't know how to face retirement. He hasn't retired yet but is already pressured by retirement. This reminded me of my graduate advisor, who was also afraid of retirement. People with achievements in their careers are often trapped by their achievements and cannot extricate themselves from their careers.
These are all about living in the present, where the present refers to the time, place, and content of the moment. People should not be influenced by others' opinions but simply enjoy it. For example, a person farming in a remote area, if they enjoy farming and don't chase after making big money abroad, then they are cultivating, extraordinary, and happy. I suddenly remembered Old Deng's father, who chose to stay in his rural hometown and continue working the land instead of going abroad with his son. No wonder he is 99 years old and still physically strong.
British TV series - Manhunt (2019-2021)
(Oh, the WENXUECITY webpage is really user-friendly! Thank you!)
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多谢油翁！！！
