"Our anxieties and fears for the future make the present dark. There is no doubt that the future will be black too, because we know that the future is made up of the present. Taking care of the present is the best way to take care of the future. Sometimes, because we are so concerned about what will happen the next day, we toss and turn all night, unable to sleep. We worry that if we cannot sleep during the night, we will be tired the next day and unable to perform to the best of our ability. The more we worry, the more difficult it is for us to sleep. Our worries and fears for the future destroy the present. But if we stop thinking about tomorrow and just stay in bed and follow our breathing, really enjoying the opportunity we have to rest, not only will we savor the moments of peace and joy under the warm blankets, but we will fall asleep quite easily and naturally. That kind of sleep is a big help for making the next day a success."

~ Thich Nhat Hanh, "Our Appointment With Life: Discourse on Living Happily in the Present Moment," Parallax Press, 1990.

This is such a good quote! Sometimes, I think that the idea that we "create our future" is taken in a literal or magical thinking way. My take on this and any of the Buddha's teachings is that we learn to deal with our present circumstances on all sorts of levels, not that no bad thing will ever happen again when "enlightenment" is achieved. This point of view isn't very popular, though since there is a part of all of us that has the hope that something will change that will make everything ok - rather than seeing that everything is already "ok", that we don't have to suffer with our circumstances. We can certainly work to make changes, we just don't need to waste time in worry, hope, and anquish over how things are and how they develop.

Hopefully soon I'll write down a couple of experiences and my own foibles of habit energy - how that gets me into trouble, but ultimately helps me root out inconsistencies I didn't realize were there.