One problem with gazing too frequently into the past is that we may turn around to find the future has run out on us. – Michael Cibenko
Past, present and future are all time concepts but just at different periods. Most times, people are so caught up in their past that they forget they are in their present. But, if you forget to live in your present, what guarantees that there would be a future waiting for you? The future will never come if you're stuck up in your past. Instead, you'll see that you're waiting for something that will never come back.
The Greeks believed "that we go back into the future and face the past." This means that since the future is unpredictable we should face the past, that way we will focus on the present. While the Greeks had a reason for this kind of logic, they wanted to emphasise the importance of living and appreciating the present. Facing the past does not mean living in it. No, to face your past means to accept what has happened and move on from it. Only then can you live in your present. And this present is a really beautiful place because, unlike the past or future, we're in charge. We can make decisions that will shape our future and give us a predictable future. While the past might be a sad place to be in and the future might be scary because of the uncertainties in it, the present can be our safe Haven, the only place we can happily look to because it's only then we're in charge.
"Hate doesn't bear love, Anger doesn't bear happiness and discontentment doesn't bear satisfaction."
Sometimes, you just need to accept that some circumstances or situations in your life are meant to be let go of. Some negative experiences need to be left in the past so you can build a positive present. How far would hate take you? Or Anger? They only eat out of you and give nothing in return. At that point, you've become a parasite to yourself; mentally self-harming yourself without realising until it's too late. I have hated and I have loved and time upon time, I will always pick love over hate, happiness over anger and contentment over greed.
“We do not heal the past by dwelling there; we heal the past by living fully in the present.”
– Marianne Williamson
Your past might be something you're trying to heal because you feel it's an anchor to your life. You might think you can not live in your present without healing the past. But what if you've been doing it the wrong way? What if living in the present was the way to heal the past?
"Some of us think holding on makes us strong, but sometimes it is letting go" –Herman Hesse.
Holding onto the past only weakens you and distracts you from a more beautiful present that awaits you. You can never get to the present without leaving the past. The present is always there, reaching out, waiting, all you need to do is accept its hand and see where it leads you.
"When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be.”– Lao Tzu
And what you might be is what you want to be.
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