The Present

I have just got back from 17 or so days in Mauritius celebrating my daughter's wedding, but we also got to swim with dolphins, most importantly a walk with a pair of real live, fully alert lions.  To top it off we made some new friends as well, and that's where the lessons I have learned so many times came home and made real sense to me.

We were playing table tennis, it seemed to be the blokes go to late afternoon activity, competitive enough for us to take the mick out of each other, energetic enough to make us feel we had done something and friendly enough to keep chatting.

"What are you planing on doing next?" combined with a spin service can be pretty lethal.  There are so many answers you could give and to be honest I was so very nearly into a blow by blow account of my diary for the next four weeks after I got back.  Then I thought two things.  First, 'that's a bit heavy after half a dozen or so gin fizzes', and secondly 'whoa!! Why spoil the moment?'     So I said, you know I dunno, might go for a swim in the Indian Ocean, then grab a shower, read a bit and have a cigar then go and have a couple of drinks before dinner with the family.  Howabout you?'  'Fancy a game of chess before the swim?' was his reply.  And I thought 'yes you flash git, I'll beat you on the board as well as on the table.

I learnt two things there in that brief moment of trying to return a table tennis serve.  One - listen to both the spoken question and the unspoken context it is set in before you reply.  Two - the present is a gift, enjoy it and don't allow yourself to get sucked into always living in the future.