As hard as I try, sometimes it’s hard to live ‘in the moment’.

I enjoy photography, but does holding a camera in front of my face take away from the moment?

I love to reflect on my adventures. In fact, I enjoy blogging about my weekend activities most Mondays – it helps me to solidify my memories and better appreciate each small excusion.  I wonder whether this counts as living in the past, or is it merely appreciating my experiences and sharing my thoughts and lessons?

I almost forgot about my trip to the Pumphouse in Moncton – excellent food and blueberry beer

Today I find myself anticipating the future. This too is an area that I try to avoid – mostly because I’m in such an awkward transitional phase between university and adult life and I really want to appreciate what I have right now. I don’t want to get caught living in some sort of unproductive day dream about how cool my weekend plans are (St. Andrews-by-the-sea for whale watching), or planning outfits around the shoes I intend to wear next weekend as I cover the Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival for Ride the Tempo (although researching the acts is totally permitted).

My first Marine Biology field course was on the rocky intertidal shores of St. Andrews-by-the-sea

I used to love to take photos of my outfits ;) Also I used to have wicked cute hair

Where is the line for this ‘living in the moment’ thing? What if you’re like me: you enjoy reflection and planning events to come; taking photos and live-tweeting events? I suppose that I’m still in the present.  I have a to-do list for my afternoon that I intend to stick to before heading off on a bucket-list adventure. It’s really a good mix of past, present, and future – is it not?

Random side-track: does this look like poison ivy to you? I should have got a better photo last weekend…

Living in the moment must involve a certain amount of sitting still, getting your work done, and remaining on task – as well as being fully present in the more enjoyable moments. It’s about completing the little tasks and knowing when to put away that cell phone to enjoy the sights, sounds, and people around you. Every moment doesn’t have to be exciting, but should help you to move forward.