"We are creatures of the moment; we live from one little space to another, and only one interest at a time fills these"

Humans are deeply rooted in the present, their perceptions and emotions largely confined to the immediate circumstances they inhabit. Howells suggests that we drift through life, inhabiting discrete pockets of time, each moment a small room with its own set of walls, perspectives, and distractions. Rather than experiencing life as a seamless continuum, people often leap from one ephemeral focus to the next, seldom seeing the full panorama of existence or holding multiple truths at once.

This perspective highlights the limits of human attention and emotional capacity. A single concern, joy, or anxiety often dominates our consciousness, crowding out the rest. We may carry the memory of past experiences and the anticipation of future events, but typically, the present's pressing demand absorbs our energy. This phenomenon explains why sensations of happiness, grief, or frustration feel so immense, each swells to occupy all available mental space until displaced by the next pressing interest or circumstance.

Such an observation speaks to both the fragility and adaptability of people. Our ability to shift focus enables resilience, facilitating recovery from hardship and opening space for wonder and hope. Yet this same characteristic can foster forgetfulness, myopia, and a lack of sustained vision. Goals drift, lessons from the past fade, and commitments may be set aside as a new “moment” presents itself with greater urgency.

Moreover, this inherent momentariness shapes creativity and productivity. By wholly giving ourselves to the “little space” before us, we are capable of deep immersion and concentration, but this focus comes at the expense of breadth. The challenge is to balance presence and continuity, to honor each “interest” without losing sight of the larger narrative of our lives. Recognizing our moment-to-moment nature encourages not only mindfulness but also intentionality, an effort to connect each fleeting focus to a broader purpose.