Living in the present means centering yourself, grounding yourself. "When you aren’t being present you become a victim of time. Your mind is pulled into the past or the future, or both. Your thoughts are of the past: what has been, what could have been, what you thought happened vs. what actually did happen. Or, your thoughts are of the future: what will be, what could be, what might be, if… Of course, it’s natural to spend moments of thought in the past or in daydreams of the future. Identifying impending dangers through associations with things that have happened in the past is important for self-preservation. But when our lives become dictated by thoughts and emotions attached to past events and potential future outcomes, standing peacefully rooted in the present becomes increasingly rare". https://www.pocketmindfulness.com/live-in-the-present-moment/