It was not that anything planned was unpleasant – quite the contrary. Why then did I feel anxious? When I dug deeper I realized I wanted to be sure everything happened just as I had planned. My worry was about the unknown. What if “that” happened? What if “that” didn’t happen? Oh, my.

This started me thinking about how often I “interrogate the future.” That is, I question what might happen, fearful that what will happen might derail my well-dreamed of expectations of the way it should be.

However, what happens or doesn’t happen in the future isn’t always something to fear.

How many times has life shown up mysteriously and wonderfully without the aid of any preconceived notions? Surprise events, like gifts from the Good Fairy, have appeared to enrich my life. I did not need to know about them ahead of time to benefit from and enjoy them – finding my comfortable home, encountering a fascinating new friend, invitations to speak, etc.

Even when the unexpected appeared at first to be dreadful, in time I realized the underlying gift of evolutionary growth that came from it.

Noticing my anxiety brings the awareness that I have fallen into wanting to control my life or believing I know what is best for me. I don’t always know consciously what is best. My role is to imagine or intend what I would like, but then let it go and gratefully receive whatever enters my life as a gift of what is best for the next step in my life’s journey.

This topic is quite appropriate right now because in the next few years the rate of breakdown of old ways brought about by innovations and change is likely to speed up. We all will need to beware of “interrogating the future,” when feeling fear and trepidation about the unknown.

Rather than worry about the future, it is best to put your focus on being mindful of all that you have in this present moment. Are you healthy? Are you fed? Are you clothed and warm? Do you give and receive love? Then you are better off than many others.