In the Vietnamese epic poem Tale of Kieu, Kieu returns to the apartment and finds his beloved Kim Trong asleep in his desk. Kim hears Kieu’s footsteps, but, not quite awake, he asks, “Are you really there, or am I dreaming?” Kieu replies, “Now we have the opportunity to see each other clearly. But if we do not live deeply this moment, it will only be a dream.”

This is an excerpt from a book The Heart of the Buddha’s Teaching, and it sheds light on the opinion that we should be fully present, savoring each and every minute of life.

The reason I bring this up here, in this first issue of 2019, is to remind us all of the importance of being “in the moment.” It has been two years since I have joined The Argus, and a lot has changed for me since I have chosen to work for this organization. One of my biggest takeaways from The Argus was the awareness that I have not fully enjoyed small moments, which can make all these experiences feel like a dream.

There were many times I did not embrace the beautiful moments that life was offering as a gift. Instead, I was wasting most of my time blaming myself for making stupid mistakes and constantly worrying about things over which I did not have control. This way of living had tremendous negative effects on my well-being.
With the new Argus, this is what my team and I want to create: a space where we can talk about things that matter to each and every one of us, not thinking any part of our journey is something that we need to put up with in order to get to some destination. I hope everyone can also have this right mindfulness towards life. 

By Moon Chae-un
Editor-in-Chief