---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The present moment is nice but it does…"
description: "\"The present moment is nice but it does not last. Living in it is like waiting in a junction town for the morning limited; the junction may be interesti..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b94/bruce-catton-15493_doe_the-present-moment-is-nice-but-it-does-n_938312.jpg"
---

#  The present moment is nice but it does not last. Living in…

![“The present moment is nice but it does not last. Living in it is like waiting in a junction town for the morning limited; the junction may be interesting but some day you will have to leave it and you do not know where the limited will take you.” quote by Bruce Catton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b94/bruce-catton-15493_doe_the-present-moment-is-nice-but-it-does-n_938312.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b94/bruce-catton-15493_doe_the-present-moment-is-nice-but-it-does-n_938312.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b94/bruce-catton-15493_doe_the-present-moment-is-nice-but-it-does-n_938312.jpg)

> “The present moment is nice but it does not last. Living in it is like waiting in a junction town for the morning limited; the junction may be interesting but some day you will have to leave it and you do not know where the limited will take you.”

[Bruce Catton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-catton/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Living fully in the present is fleeting; it offers temporary comfort but inevitably gives way to unknown futures.

**In simple terms:** Enjoy now, but accept change.

Key Takeaway

Embrace the moment, prepare for transition.

Themes

mindfulness impermanence anticipation

Mood

reflective thoughtful

Type

philosophical inspirational

When to use this quote

- personal relationships
- career decisions
- creative projects

Key Concepts

temporal awareness acceptance growth

Questions to Reflect On

- What does “present” mean to you?
- How do you balance savoring now with future goals?

A Different Perspective

Overemphasis on the present can hinder long‑term planning.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Junction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/junction/) [Moment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moment/) [Moments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moments/) [Morning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/morning/) [Present moment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/present-moment/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/)

## Related quotes

> [We have now left Reason and Sanity Junction. Next stop, Looneyville.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-butcher/we-have-now-left-reason-and-sanity-junction-next-stop-looneyville/)

[Jim Butcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-butcher/)

> [There are seven primary centers, junctions, within the subtle physical body. These are called the seven chakras.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/there-are-seven-primary-centers-junctions-within-the-subtle-physical/)

[Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/)

> [Bleaching my hair for Two Moon Junction... my hair was fried and I looked like an idiot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherilyn-fenn/bleaching-my-hair-for-two-moon-junction-my-hair-was-fried-and-i/)

[Sherilyn Fenn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherilyn-fenn/)

> [I cannot pursue my architecture without considering the minimization of energy consumption, simple and direct technologies, a respect for site, climate, place and culture.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-murcutt/i-cannot-pursue-my-architecture-without-considering-the-minimization/)

[Glenn Murcutt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-murcutt/)

> [ “\[M\]an is not an island, he is more like a spaghetti junction.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-cooke/m-an-is-not-an-island-he-is-more-like-a-spaghetti-junction/)

Elizabeth Cooke

> [Not every junction is a bus stop.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/not-every-junction-is-a-bus-stop/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [No interruptions, stereos pumpin from the dungeon, coming live from Flatbush Junction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/capital-steez/no-interruptions-stereos-pumpin-from-the-dungeon-coming-live-from/)

[Capital STEEZ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/capital-steez/)

> [The minimum could be defined as the perfection that an artefact achieves when it is no longer possible to improve it by subtraction. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-pawson/the-minimum-could-be-defined-as-the-perfection-that-an-artefact/)

[John Pawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-pawson/)

> [Thus the highest form of generalship is to balk the enemy's plans, the next best is to prevent the junction of the enemy's forces,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sun-tzu/thus-the-highest-form-of-generalship-is-to-balk-the-enemy-s-plans-the/)

[Sun Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sun-tzu/)

> [The first stop on this crazy train is Kindergarten Junction, and nobody gets off until it pulls into Harvard Station.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-semple/the-first-stop-on-this-crazy-train-is-kindergarten-junction-and/)

[Maria Semple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-semple/)

> [“Remember, your wishes are on the ways God created. If you miss the way, you are automatically missing that great treasure! Be on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/remember-your-wishes-are-on-the-ways-god-created-if-you-miss-the-way/)

[Israelmore Ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/)

> [Who among us has not, in moments of ambition, dreamt of the miracle of a form of poetic prose, musical but without rhythm and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-baudelaire/who-among-us-has-not-in-moments-of-ambition-dreamt-of-the-miracle-of/)

[Charles Baudelaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-baudelaire/)

> [Editing is not merely a method of the junction of separate scenes or pieces, but is a method that controls the 'psychological guidance' of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vsevolod-pudovkin/editing-is-not-merely-a-method-of-the-junction-of-separate-scenes-or/)

Vsevolod Pudovkin

> [Think of something you really care about. Then add hour to hour and calculate the fraction of your life that you've actually spent in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/think-of-something-you-really-care-about-then-add-hour-to-hour-and/)

[George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/)

> [If you stand still in any city long enough, you see everyone pass you by. So you're in Chicago. If you stand on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-hansard/if-you-stand-still-in-any-city-long-enough-you-see-everyone-pass-you/)

[Glen Hansard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-hansard/)

## More by Bruce Catton

> [ Beneath everything else, North and West, there ran a profound, unvoiced, almost subconscious conviction that the \[American\] nation was going to go on growing-in… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-catton/beneath-everything-else-north-and-west-there-ran-a-profound-unvoiced/)

[Bruce Catton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-catton/)

> [The 1860 election became a referendum on the southern way of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-catton/the-1860-election-became-a-referendum-on-the-southern-way-of-life/)

[Bruce Catton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-catton/)

> [What began as a bitter dispute over Union and States' Rights, ended as a struggle over the meaning of freedom in America. At Gettysburg…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-catton/what-began-as-a-bitter-dispute-over-union-and-states-rights-ended-as/)

[Bruce Catton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-catton/)

> [And there is the headlight, shining far down the track, glinting off the steel rails that, like all parallel lines, will meet in infinity,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-catton/and-there-is-the-headlight-shining-far-down-the-track-glinting-off/)

[Bruce Catton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-catton/)

> [The Civil War was fought in 10,000 places, from Valverde, New Mexico, and Tullahoma, Tennessee, to St. Albans, Vermont, and Fernandina on the Florida…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-catton/the-civil-war-was-fought-in-10-000-places-from-valverde-new-mexico/)

[Bruce Catton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-catton/)

> [Even the most painstaking history is a bridge across an eternal mystery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-catton/even-the-most-painstaking-history-is-a-bridge-across-an-eternal/)

[Bruce Catton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-catton/)

> [Shiloh had as many casualties as Waterloo, and yet there were another 20 Waterloos to come.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-catton/shiloh-had-as-many-casualties-as-waterloo-and-yet-there-were-another/)

[Bruce Catton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-catton/)

> [“The end of the war was like the beginning, with the army marching down the open road under the spring sky, seeing a far…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-catton/the-end-of-the-war-was-like-the-beginning-with-the-army-marching-down/)

[Bruce Catton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-catton/)

> [“Early youth is a baffling time. The present moment is nice but it does not last. Living in it is like waiting in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-catton/early-youth-is-a-baffling-time-the-present-moment-is-nice-but-it-does/)

[Bruce Catton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-catton/)

> [Here was the greatest and most moving chapter in American history, a blending of meanness and greatness, an ending and a beginning. It came…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-catton/here-was-the-greatest-and-most-moving-chapter-in-american-history-a/)

[Bruce Catton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-catton/)

> [Like most Rebel soldiers, Sam Watkins owned no slaves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-catton/like-most-rebel-soldiers-sam-watkins-owned-no-slaves/)

[Bruce Catton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-catton/)

> [Abraham Lincoln was not all brooding and melancholy and patient understanding. There was a hard core in him, and plenty of toughness. He could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-catton/abraham-lincoln-was-not-all-brooding-and-melancholy-and-patient/)

[Bruce Catton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-catton/)

> [Sooner or later you must move down an unknown road that leads beyond the range of the imagination, and the only certainty is that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-catton/sooner-or-later-you-must-move-down-an-unknown-road-that-leads-beyond/)

[Bruce Catton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-catton/)

> [Men see things late, and it may be that at times an evil fate drives them on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-catton/men-see-things-late-and-it-may-be-that-at-times-an-evil-fate-drives/)

[Bruce Catton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-catton/)

> [I think I was always subconsciously driven by an attempt to restate that faith and to show where it was properly grounded, how it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-catton/i-think-i-was-always-subconsciously-driven-by-an-attempt-to-restate/)

[Bruce Catton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-catton/)

[Explore all 43 Bruce Catton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-catton/)

## More Doe quotes

> [So the fool, as distinct from the scoundrel, is completely self- satisfied; in fact, he can easily become dangerous, as it does not take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/so-the-fool-as-distinct-from-the-scoundrel-is-completely-self/)

[Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/)

> [I cannot forbid a person to marry several wives, for it does not contradict Scripture. MARTIN LUTHER, letter to Chancellor Gregory Brück, January 13,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-de-la-bruyere/i-cannot-forbid-a-person-to-marry-several-wives-for-it-does-not/)

[Jean de la Bruyere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-de-la-bruyere/)

> [For successful education there must always be a certain freshness in the knowledge dealt with. It must be either new in itself or invested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/for-successful-education-there-must-always-be-a-certain-freshness-in/)

[Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/)

> [The prophet who fails to present a bearable alternative and yet preaches doom is part of the trap that he postulates. Not only does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/the-prophet-who-fails-to-present-a-bearable-alternative-and-yet/)

[Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/)

> [Sometimes a sign or a quote is simply interesting by itself and does not require anything beyond being framed on a page.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-vincent-benet/sometimes-a-sign-or-a-quote-is-simply-interesting-by-itself-and-does/)

[Stephen Vincent Benet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-vincent-benet/)

> [A home is not a museum. It doesn't have to be furnished with Picasso paintings, or Sheraton suites, or Oriental rugs, or Chinese pottery.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-m-cain/a-home-is-not-a-museum-it-doesn-t-have-to-be-furnished-with-picasso/)

[James M. Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-m-cain/)

> [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/)

[Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/)

> [He's a fool that marries; but he's a greater fool that does not marry a fool.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wycherley/he-s-a-fool-that-marries-but-he-s-a-greater-fool-that-does-not-marry/)

[William Wycherley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wycherley/)

> [Nothing old is ever reborn but neither does it totally disappear. And that which has once been born, will always reappear in a new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alvar-aalto/nothing-old-is-ever-reborn-but-neither-does-it-totally-disappear-and/)

[Alvar Aalto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alvar-aalto/)

> [One of the things the United States does well is building coalitions. What the U.S. knows is that if you don't have a coalition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shimon-peres/one-of-the-things-the-united-states-does-well-is-building-coalitions/)

[Shimon Peres](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shimon-peres/)

> [Preaching to the choir actually arms the choir with arguments and elevates the choir's discourse. There's a reason the right does it and does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-savage/preaching-to-the-choir-actually-arms-the-choir-with-arguments-and/)

[Dan Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-savage/)

> [There is something about the South that accepts the supernatural. If you don't accept it and you're having a conversation with someone who does,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-englert/there-is-something-about-the-south-that-accepts-the-supernatural-if/)

[Alice Englert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-englert/)

> [ If the State does not acquire supremacy over \[vast private\] enterprises, it becomes their puppet, and they become the real State. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/if-the-state-does-not-acquire-supremacy-over-vast-private-enterprises/)

[Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/)

> [If Wall Street crashes, does Main Street follow? Not necessarily.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-bernanke/if-wall-street-crashes-does-main-street-follow-not-necessarily/)

[Ben Bernanke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-bernanke/)

> [It does not seem to me to be sufficiently recognized everywhere among the officials that the existence or non-existence of our people and Empire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-von-hindenburg/it-does-not-seem-to-me-to-be-sufficiently-recognized-everywhere-among/)

[Paul von Hindenburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-von-hindenburg/)

Browse all 25,574 Doe quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "The present moment is nice but it does not last. Living in it is like waiting in a junction town for the morning limited; the junction may be interesting but some day you will have to leave it and you do not know where the limited will take you.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Bruce Catton"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-catton/the-present-moment-is-nice-but-it-does-not-last-living-in-it-is-like/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Doe"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-catton/the-present-moment-is-nice-but-it-does-not-last-living-in-it-is-like/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b94/bruce-catton-15493_doe_the-present-moment-is-nice-but-it-does-n_938312.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b94/bruce-catton-15493_doe_the-present-moment-is-nice-but-it-does-n_938312.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b94/bruce-catton-15493_doe_the-present-moment-is-nice-but-it-does-n_938312.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“The present moment is nice but it does not last. Living in it is like waiting in a junction town for the…” — Bruce Catton",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Bruce Catton",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-catton/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "The present moment is nice but...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-catton/the-present-moment-is-nice-but-it-does-not-last-living-in-it-is-like/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-catton/the-present-moment-is-nice-but-it-does-not-last-living-in-it-is-like/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
