You can easily observe the mind's habit of escaping from the present moment for yourself. Just try to keep your attention focused on any object, for even a short period of time. You will find that to cultivate mindfulness, you may have to remember over and over again to be awake and aware. We do this by reminding ourselves to look, to feel, to be.
It's that simple ... checking in from moment to moment, sustaining awareness across a stretch of timeless moments, being here, now."
From Wherever You Go There You Are by Jon Kabat-Zinn