"I am going to stay in the present!" I declare! And, in the time it takes me to write those words, the present is long gone. I find myself firmly grounded in the future. I am thinking about my daughter's report that is due on Tuesday, the clients I will talk to later this week and wearily wonder when our dog will learn that although our bathroom is inside the house, his bathroom is outside.

Or, I am in the past. Why did I buy that pair of pants I will never wear and what possessed me to commit to co-chair the annual school fundraiser? Gurus, well-meaning friends and self-evolved mothers alike tell us to "be here now" and "take one day at a time." They extol the virtues of the present as though it were as wonderful as a pair of new shoes, as relaxing as a Swedish massage and as satisfying as a hot fudge sundae.

Being in the present comes with so much endorsement, I tip toe into the realm of spending some time in the "present," just to see what all the fuss is about. The first thing I can tell you is that staying in the present is mighty hard. Unfortunately, in order to stay in the present, one must be aware of each moment. This takes a disciplined mind and my mind is anything but disciplined. In fact, it needs a time-out. And the irony is, a time out is exactly what I am trying to give it!

But each time I tell myself to enjoy the moment, my mind veers off like a sleepy driver on a lonely stretch of highway. It wants to think about my to-do list. It wants to worry. It wants to hope for a better moment to come. It wants to imagine how great life would be if I could clean out the closet or lose 5 pounds. But, determined and committed, I trudge on. At first I am able to bring myself to the present for fleeting moments a few times a day. As I practice this, I am able to remember more often and enjoy more fully, the feeling of a cozy bed, the joke that my daughter just told me and the great smell of coffee brewing.

I'm beginning to see a bit of value in this notion of the present. We don't need to climb to a mountain top or live in a cave, to benefit from life in the present. We can continue to be busy, efficient, multi-taskers. Being in the present does not affect what we do or what we get done. It affects who we are being.

So do-ers continue doing! But as you do, stop and notice where you are.

COACH ME QUICK TIPS FOR THE PRESENT:

1. Find a way to remind yourself 3 times a day to be in the present. Put a reminder on your blackberry, a string around your finger or a post-it on your forehead. Whatever works!

2. When you do remember to focus on the present, identify one thing you notice that you like. Maybe your favorite song is on the radio or the kids are having fun together and not arguing.

3. Praise yourself for your moment in the present!

4. Each week, up the ante until you are spending 10 moments a day in the present. Notice how it feels. Does it change you? Does it change your experience of life?

Start now. There is no time like the present.