Counting Down or Counting Up?
Many people I know are currently moving from one phase of life to the next. Some are preparing for retirement. Some are engaged, with plans to marry and start a family. Some are reaching milestone birthdays.
People experiencing these transition points often count the days until something happens; i.e., until we retire or until we get married. Interestingly, we can count the days down or we can count them up.
Counting down involves counting backwards, or the time remaining. Counting up involves counting from a particular time. These are completely different practices.
As Dr. David Sanders, the executive director of the Kabbalah Experience notes: “We count down when we think we know something. We count up when we have no idea.”
As an example, my friend Andy says: “I have 49 days until I retire.” He’s counting down. He thinks he will retire on a certain day. But does he really know that for a fact? Who knows what can happen between now and then that may affect his retirement date? Andy is living in the future of what he thinks will happen by counting down.
Paula, a member of Alcoholics Anonymous, offers a classic case of counting up. He says: “I have 49 days of sobriety.” This implies that he has no idea when something different may happen. Paula is living from the present moment.
As milestones approach, consider if you’re counting down or counting up. Turning 50 can mean my life is half over (counting down), or it can mean I’m starting the second half of my life (counting up.) Counting down and counting up feel completely different.
As Dr. Sanders explains, counting up is a metaphor for, “Am I really present today?”
Counting up allows us to be present in our lives with a sense of gratitude in a way that counting down does not.
Kabbalahexperience.com
