Having lived in Spain for 2 years, I always heard people say "carpe diem" or "vivir el momento" (living in the present). No matter what country or culture, more and more people take it as a creed. To them: living in the present equals to spending all of the money once they get some or having sex as soon as the opportunity presents.
In their eyes, the future is uncertain, and we can't return to the past. Only the present is able to be grasped, then I only need to meet the desire of the present, and I will be happy, then I can say I am living in the present. All this sounds logical, especially in this time filled with stress, the pleasure of satisfying desires can really pull people away from it. But they made two mistakes (in my opinion):
1. In many cases, we can grasp the future
2. Pleasure ≠ happiness
(Origin: Pixabay)
For example, when you open any dating app, most people are looking for one time thing, calling themselves of being "living in the moment, being independent and not needing relationships". I'd like to clarify that as adults, I'm not biased against any act of sex, as long as both are willing, without hurting anyone, because we have control over our bodies. But I would like to ask these people: how many of them can guarantee that after that joy, they will not fall into the endless emptiness? Is this so called "living in the moment"? I don't believe it.
So I asked the tarot: what is living in the moment?
The cards I drew were Knight of Cup + Page of the Wands+ 9 of Cups. To see toward where the Knight runs, I added a another card (the Moon). The first thing that caught my attention was that the four cards were filled with water-related elements (the pool of the Moon + the Cups) and a wand. I feel that living in the moment is an act of emotion rather than rational thinking (the lack of coins and swords). The Knight rushes to the Moon of the subconscious and fills the pond with his own resources (the cup). He may satisfy the subconscious desires for the moment, but that is not all. With each resource you spend, you have to keep an eye on how much you have left (9 of Cups) and save some for the future life.
(Gassman Tarot by VieuxMondeExpress)
Simply put, you can enjoy the moment, but be responsible for yourself. Please don't use it as an excuse to indulge!
When it comes to money, my mother and my aunt have opposite attitudes. My mom thinks that "money needs to be spent where it's most needed". But my aunt said that money was not saved, it was earned. She gives an example: When you see a $1 and $2 cake in a shop, if the $2 cake is really better than the $1, and it makes you happy and affordable, just buy the $2 cake, otherwise you'll always be thinking about it. But if it's really not a big difference, buy the $1 one. After all, thrift is always a virtue.
Living in the present should bring true happiness, not at the expense of future emptiness. When you're focused on painting, crafting, singing, or just lying on the grass, listening to music and enjoying the peace of concentration at the moment, that is living in the present, just as me, silenced my phone and writing this article intently.
(Origin: Pixabay)
Pull some cards and tell me what is Carpe Diem for you in the comment below!
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