I am a terrible Internet friend to you all.
It's been weeks since I've posted anything on here, and I feel really bad because I have NO EXCUSE WHATSOEVER. I did for the first couple weeks... I was in show, midterms rolled around, all that jazz. I was busy. Now, however, I have no excuse short of just lacking the drive to sit down and write. Forgive me.
I've been thinking a lot about the past. Ever had one of those weeks? You know, where it all kinda comes rushing back out you, and all you can do is think about how things "used to be?" That's kinda what my week has been like. Of course, with any reminiscence like that, you can't help but fall into the trap of wishing for "the good old days".
The past almost always has some part of it that we think is better than the present (oddly, those times seem to fall between June and September... curious). We think back on all this stuff and find ourselves wishing we could go back to those times. Maybe it was someplace you went. Maybe it was an event you were a part of. Maybe it was someone you were with, perhaps even close to, and you have that thought, "Man... I wish I could go back to that."
On the other hand, sometimes we can't help but remember the bad. We only remember the failures, the disappointments, the heartaches. All we can do is see how bad life has been, and then mourn, because it doesn't feel like it's gotten any better.
The essential problem with this is the failure to take both of these together. When remembering the good, we fail to take the negatives that bring those experiences within the realm of reality. When remembering the bad, we fail to recall the good times that made life worth living. Instead, we focus on whatever it was that we feel like remembering, and leaving out all the rest.
When I considered this, I viewed my musings differently: instead of reflecting on the way things were, what about how things have changed since them? How I have changed? What have I learned between then and now? What makes me different from the "old" me?
Try something. Mark the date. Put a notice on your calendar. Make a notification on your phone. One year from now, think back to today, and make it a point to have grown in some way. Make a goal to grow in some way. Above all, take life as it is. There will be good, and there will be bad. That's a given. Don't let any of it be forgotten, but learn from all of it. It's what makes you who you are.
Grace and Peace be yours in abundance,
The Wayfaring Stranger
