The Relevance of the Here and Now

What is there to celebrate these days? Can things get any worse? Wait, don't answer that! It seems that anxiety is palpable all around us. You don't have to go very far to be inundated with bad news. We seem surrounded by information and most of it frightening and dreadful. With the California budget in its current mess , we are feeling the pinch of declining dollars from the school districts and regional centers, our main funding sources. Add to that the worst recession in years causing a reduction in philanthropy in these perilous economic times and you have a confluence of factors that cause us all to wait anxiously for the other shoe to drop. What next, we wonder?

In spite of the gloomy climate we are all experiencing, I am reminded that those of us who work at the Morgan Autism Center are in so many ways, very lucky. We are surrounded by children and adults who, though challenged by autism, are not worried by the many anxieties that dog the rest of us. What will happen in the future is not something that concerns them. 401K in the tank? Not to worry! They live in the present, and focus on their immediate needs and interests. They are the ultimate Zen people, living in the moment and experiencing it fully. They are natural practitioners of "mindfulness" without any effort!

For years in one of our classrooms there was an old broken wall clock with a handwritten note that said, "There is no time like the present." It remained for years and always made me smile when I saw it. But beyond the humor of the timeless clock is the profound sense that there is, indeed, no time like the here and now, and no matter how big the picture of which we all are a part, our reality is about getting through each day, one step at a time. So, while we work with our students on the many aspects necessary to facilitate living their lives fully, they are providing us with invaluable lessons as they teach us about what is really important. And this is what makes us so lucky to be in their presence. Somehow, they remind us that life it too short to worry about that over which we have no control. We must relish each moment and prioritize our lives, as we move on together, one foot in front of the other, one day at a time.

So, what is there to celebrate? Its all the little things, the small accomplishments and successes, the smiles and simple delights that make us realize there is, indeed, much to celebrate.