活在当下　live for today

This week I got some really sad news, my friend's wife died suddenly of a brain aneurysm. One day she was here and vibrant¹ and in an instant there was a different story to tell. This made me remember how my mother reacted to the news of someone's death. She'd always say, "That's why you have to live for today." That's a great sentiment but how often do we any of us live into that idea? I'd say, not often enough.

这一周，我接到了一个十分令人悲伤的消息，我朋友的妻子由于脑血管瘤突然死亡。前些天她还在这里，充满活力，眨眼间就物事人非。这让我回忆起我母亲对死亡消息的反应。她总是说：“所以啊，我们得活在当下。” 这是肺腑之言，但是人们会在现实中做到吗？ 我说大家做得很不够。

News of a accident, sudden illness or death gives us momentary² pause when they don't impact us directly. We do a quick inventory³ of our lives and vow⁴ to do better but rather quickly we're back in our regular routines. But when the issues strike closer, lives can be forever altered---impacting how we live, breathe and act. In addition, to shock, anger and grief there's also self-examination (sometimes extreme self-examination). But turning those findings into actionable ideas may take more energy than you've got in such a challenging time.

对我们没有直接影响的事故、突发疾病或死亡的消息让我们暂时停下脚步，迅速盘点一下自己的生活，发誓将做地更好，但很快我们又回到了老样子。当如果这些不幸和我们是相关的，生活可能被永远地改变。我们的生活、呼吸和行为的方式都会受影响。除了震惊、愤怒和悲哀，我们开始自省（有时候是极度的自省）。但是在如此具有挑战性时期，你的能量也许不足以将这些发现变为可执行的想法。

So how does one live for today?

那么如何才能更好地活在当下呢?

We start by not waiting for something bad to happen to spur us into action. And we commit to this as part of our daily lives. Here are four questions that can start you on your way:

不要等待不幸来促使我们采取行动。我们要将决心作为习惯融入生活。以下是要问的四个问题:

Do I know what really matters to me?

我知道对我来说到底什么是重要的吗？

Do I know what brings me joy?

我知道什么能带给我快乐吗？

Are there things in my life that need to go to make room for what's important?

生活中有什么事情可以被搁置，以便为重要的事情腾出空间？

What am I waiting for?

我在等待什么？

I start with these questions because you need to know what matters at your core in order to have a more fulfilling life. What makes you happy? What makes you uncomfortable or even angry? Although we can't avoid some of the mundane⁵ tasks in life we can couple them with things that bring us joy.

我用这些问题开场，因为你得先了解你心里什么最重要，才能过上充实的生活。什么让你快乐？什么让你感到不舒服甚至愤怒？虽然我们无法回避生活中枯燥的活动，但我们能将快乐和无聊融合起来。

You also need to identify the people, places and things that drain you emotionally, spiritually and physically⁶. If you can't eliminate them entirely⁷ from your life you need to find ways to minimize your exposure to them and their impact on your life.

你还需要发现从情感上、精神上、体力上折磨你的人、地点和事情。如果你无法完全把他们从你的生活中消除，你需要想办法减少和他们的接触，将他们对你生活的影响最小化。

Honestly access your wants, needs and aspirations⁸. Do you have a dream that has gone unfulfilled? Why? If the answer is you're waiting for such and such to happen, now is the time to stop waiting and take action. Then you can banish⁹ woulda, coulda, shoulda from your vocabulary.

诚实地了解自己想要、需要和渴望哪些东西。你有未实现的梦想吗？为何没实现？如果是因为你守株待兔而不行动，那现在就是停止等待、开始行动的时候。这样你才会让“本来如何”，“本可以如何”，“本应该如何”从你的字典里消失。

Finally, remember that each day is a gift (yes even if your stuck in traffic, the baby is crying, or you've burnt tonight's dinner) and your life can change in an instant.

最后，记着，每一天都是一份礼物（即便交通拥堵、孩子哭闹、晚饭被烧焦），你的生活眨眼之间就能改变。