Be grateful for everyday life, for this very moment is time spent with God. This was our meditation from the Desert Fathers column in the Catholic Times.
‘Live today!’ This exhortation from the Desert Fathers resonates with the Latin adage ‘Carpe diem’—'Seize the day.' This phrase originates from a line in a poem Horace wrote for Augustus. It urges us not to worry about an uncertain future, but to focus on the present, cherish today, and live to the fullest. In short, it emphasizes the attitude of living faithfully in the present. Live today also means living each day with gratitude, joy, and doing our best.
We can easily become ensnared by the past that has already passed, or live in the future, burdened by a future that has not yet come. In doing so, we fail to live in the most certain present, instead dwelling in the past or future. In truth, the only thing we can be certain of is today, this very moment. The past has already passed, and the future is uncertain. Today could be the last day of my life. And if I open my eyes the next morning to see a new day, it is as if I have been given new life.
When we finish each day, we enter death once more. In a way, our lives are a continuous cycle of resurrection and death. We rise with Christ and die with Christ. This is precisely the life of participating in the Paschal Mystery as Christians. There is a line in a well-known gospel song: “I don't know what tomorrow holds, I live day by day.”
It's a perfectly apt expression. That's because the only certain time given to us is today. No one knows what tomorrow will bring. Who can guarantee I will see another new day? In this sense, we are all living day to day. Of course, this is meant positively, not negatively.
Remaining in the present is crucial. It means living today. The Desert Fathers strove to dwell in the present, here and now, living each day fully. We often fail to dwell in the present. This is commonly observed in daily life. For example, when shaking hands with several people, looking at the next person instead of the one whose hand you are shaking. Such greetings feel formal and ritualistic, lacking any sincerity. Because it means letting this precious time of life—today, which will never come again—slip away so meaninglessly.
Whether cleaning, washing dishes, cooking, or doing any other seemingly trivial task, whatever you do, it is important to focus your heart and mind on it. Even when opening or closing a door, or setting the table, your heart must be present there. This is what it means to live in the present.
