Memories, Dreams and Life!

On a lazy morning, I open the laptop, connect my hard disk, and start going through the photos that run up to 7-8 years back (that is when we started carrying Digi cam). Sometimes, I go into my old emails, finding old email conversation, and reading them through. Chat logs, where we friends used to get together on group chat and type crazy stuffs. Things like BDay or Farewell cards, souvenirs, some old movie tickets, bills etc...

All these bring in a flood of memories back into our mind and heart. What I wonder is- Why?

Why memories mean so much to us? Why whenever we talk to an old friend, we recall the times when we were together rather than sharing the current updates? Why does the present time always lose its charm in front of the past memories? What is it that makes Memories so precious for everyone?

They are there everywhere, whenever your heart craves for some memory; anything around you will trigger one. The sunset, noodles, couple on bike, kids in park, smell of mud in the rain, some video on YouTube, the song you are listening to, some movie dialogue, the way some one opens a can of soda, some t-shirt/dress, some color, fluttering leaves, passing bus– anything remotely connected can take you back into the world more than a decade old.

As soon as our mind wanders away from the present moment, we are either wandering in the world of past memories or future dreams. Buddha says in one of his quotes “Do not dwell in the past; do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment”.

But over time I have discovered, it is definitely not simple or common thing that Buddha is asking us to do. Every single body in this world has his mind always sitting on the train of thoughts. And thoughts almost every time not related to present moment. There are hardly few minutes in the entire day, where a person solely engages his mind, heart and soul in present moment. Rest of the time, he or she is either worried or excited about what’s going to happen in future or dwelling in their past memories.

Memories bring in smile; at times give a pinch of pain in heart and almost always fills us with waves of different emotions. I know – an equal partner in crime is Dreams! Just like memories, we are almost always dreaming, anything you think of future is a dream. A dream or a night mare; doesn’t matter, but you are thinking of something that has not yet occurred.

And then there is a different angle of thought, where you go into your past, and dream that the event took place differently. You think “if I had done like this instead of that, then today things would have been different” or “if that incident did not occur then I would have been somewhere else” and so on.

My point is – Why? Why is it so difficult for us to “Not dwell in the past” or “Not Dream of the Future”? Will it make life boring? Why can’t I spend my entire day just thinking of present moments in that day, ie. Experience all the 86400 seconds of the 24 hours of my one life day in the present, in the moment all by itself!

Of course I spent my 30 minutes here writing this up, questioning my mind and heart – why? And I think the answer is we ourselves. We all love our own fantasy world, where we are happy with our friends, family, or loved one. Happiness is what everyone wants, and if the present moment is not bringing you happiness, then your mind immediately wanders into memories or dreams!

Past few months, I have been experimenting this on myself. Whenever my mind drifted into past memories or start dreaming of future, I would pull myself back and start painting or clicking photos or start writing blog like this one. But it is definitely difficult to train your thoughts, and one who is able to do it – conquers the world undoubtedly!

“One today is worth two Tomorrows” says Ben Franklin. Then isn’t it stupid of us to lose our today thinking of yesterday and tomorrow? A yesterday – that cannot be changed, and a Tomorrow that we will never see!

-Sarita
(capturing my thoughts on another day where my mind freely wanders)

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