While sailing on the San Francisco Bay this weekend, I heard a joke:
A sailor was sailing across the bay when a power boater zoomed by.
Teasing the sailor, the power boater yelled, “I’ll race you there!”
The sailor replied, “I’m already there.”
I don’t have anything against power boaters, and I’m sure plenty of power boaters are “already there” as well, but the joke does illustrate the frame of mind that mindfulness can bring. All too often, we can find ourselves in the mentality of trying to get somewhere else, be someone else, or do something else.
There’s nothing wrong with taking a journey, developing as a person, or doing something different. What matters in terms of mindfulness is being present in that process of change and appreciating the ways in which you are “already there.”
It certainly can be true that half the fun is getting there, and perhaps even more satisfaction comes from realizing the ways in which you truly are already there.
