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What a Pop Star’s Uber Ride Taught Me

We here at Plugged In have often talked about the unsettling fact that our tech can sometimes consume too much of our attention. But, the fact is, we don’t necessarily need the distractions of our smartphones or tablets to lose sight of what’s cool or beautiful or important in our lives. We’re pretty good at doing that all by ourselves, thanks very much. And that’s too bad because, hey, you never know when Lorde might just appear in the back seat of your car.

Lorde, breakout pop star, singer of the smash song “Royals” and proud peep of Taylor Swift, sent off a barrage of tweets during a Uber ride. The driver, apparently, was still over the moon because he had recently chauffeured a celebrity somewhere. He couldn’t stop talking about the famous (and, by Lorde, unnamed) him or her who had just graced his vehicle.

“I can tell our ride, by comparison, sparkles significantly less for him,” Lorde tweeted.

Now the truth is, I’m not completely sure if I’d recognize Lorde if she carpooled with me, either. I lost my obsession with pop music about the time I hit college, when Lorde was about minus-8 years old. But her tweets still offer an important reminder to me: How important it is to live, as much as we can, in the moment.

Sometimes, I’m a little like Lorde’s Uber driver. Not that I shuttle celebrities from place to place, but I can live a little in the past sometimes. I’ve even been known to leaf through old high school yearbooks on occasion. And like lots of people, I can be awfully preoccupied with the future, too. I can worry about writing deadlines and mortgage payments.

Now, there’s nothing abnormal or, really, inherently wrong, with taking stock of the past and future. But I do think that God likes us to live in the moment as much as we can—enjoy fully the gifts he’s given us. And there are times, I think, that I get so caught up in what has happened and what, I imagine, is going to happen, that I lose sight of what’s actually happening.

Take vacations: I have a great time planning them—plotting out day-by-day itineraries for the fam, looking at brochures, pinning down the reservations. “Man, it’ll be so great once we go!” I think to myself. And then, when we return, I enjoy downloading all the family photos onto the computer, organizing them, showing them off to family and friends. “Man, that was a great trip!” I say.

But was it great? Sometimes, I catch myself thinking about past vacations or considering the next one … while I’m on vacation. And I wonder whether my brain is fully engaged in the here and now … or whether I’m missing important stuff. Just like Lorde’s Uber driver.

I’m celebrating my 26th wedding anniversary today. It’s a great opportunity for the missus and I to look back at how far we’ve come. It’s nice to imagine what the next 26 years might bring.

But Lorde’s story is a good reminder to enjoy this moment, too—this day, of the nearly 9,500 we’ve shared as a married couple. And it should remind me, too, that when I wake up tomorrow, that day still has the potential to be special in its own way, as well. Because you just never know who, or what, might show up.