I always did well in school except when it came to one big roadblock. On my report card my history grade was always high. My math grade was…well, let’s say on the other end of the scale. The one thing that saved me from total loss came the day that I realized a number line was just another version of a timeline.

In each instance there is a line and there is a midpoint located on that line. In math that’s usually designated as ‘zero.’ Go in one direction, there are negative numbers. Look in the other direction and there are positive numbers. Zero is right in the middle.

It’s not so different with a timeline.

Imagine standing on a line painted on the ground; let’s call it your personal timeline. Pick one direction and call it your past. The other direction is your future. The midpoint, ground zero, is where you are standing now, and it is the only part of life that you have immediate control over. The present moment is the ‘right now’ of your life.

The past is over and done with. We can remember the past, but we can’t change it. If you have a painful memory, it is an event stuck in time and each time you remember it, you are bringing it into the present and experiencing it all over again. But it will always have the same outcome. You don’t get resolution. You get a fresh shot of pain. Like the movie “Groundhog Day,” where every day is exactly like the one before. Despite the best intentions, the past can’t be changed.

Let it go.

The future lies ahead and while your current decisions may affect your future, it is still unfolding. You are not there yet. So, just like we can’t live in the past, we can’t live in the future either. We don’t always know what’s coming but that doesn’t mean we don’t have power over what it may be. We are not victims. We have choices through our decisions that help shape our outcomes.

What we live in is the ‘right now.’ Our peace lies there because from moment to moment, it is all that we have. It is what is true in life. The present moment, this mindfulness, is with you always and it is one thing you can control. It is the one place where life can be fully lived. Right here and now is the present moment.

You can change the course of your future by making changes NOW. A tweak here. A tweak there. Little things can make big changes. Let’s say you’re on a ship leaving South America headed for Japan. If that ship’s compass is off just a degree or two at the beginning, the error compounds as you proceed across the Pacific Ocean and you will find yourself in Hong Kong or Malaysia. A slight adjustment at the beginning of the voyage could have kept you on course to land where you intended to be.

Right now, as you stand between your past and future, consider this. If your present moment shapes your future, then what is your trajectory? Where are you headed personally or professionally? Where do you want to be five, ten, or twenty years from now? If you don’t like what you see coming, you have the power to change NOW. Your NOW decisions will shape the outcome.

Small changes can have big effects. Ask yourself, “What am I willing to do to be a part of the solution and not stay anchored in the problem?”

Claim your personal timeline. Acknowledge the past. Forgive what you can because hard feelings will only hold you down. Look to the future. What’s the vision you have for yourself?

We live in dynamic times, so it is important to get a handle on things and decide what you need to do or change to create the future you want.

The future begins now. It begins with a dream for yourself and acceptance that wishes can come true.

It happens one decision at a time.