Being present requires us to have an understanding of the present. At least at some intuitive level.
Because the present, our present, is not a sealed box.
Today has a past and future. And whilst we do not know what the future holds, we can inhabit today with hope, and with gratitude for what has been.
In the words of Dag Hammarskjöld:
For all that has been, thanks.
For all that is to come, yes.
This makes a profound difference because we do not inhabit an empty box.
‘A river runs through it…’ (Normal Maclean)