Jun 20
The Constant Battle between your Past, Present and Future.
How to challenge your past, focus on the present and realise your ideal future.
If you don’t leave your past in the past, it will destroy your future. Live for what today has to offer, not what yesterday has taken away.
The constant battle between the past, present, and future self afflicts many of us, and sometimes, we don’t even take notice of this affliction.
There is a tug of war within you right now; your past keeps telling you that you are not good enough; how dare you aspire for better things in life?
It tells you where you come from and it doesn’t correlate with the future you desire to attain. I’m here to tell you it lies within your present self to either succumb to that mode of thought or challenge it.
Do I listen to my past, which I can vividly see, or do I change course for the better future by faith, not sight?
CHALLENGE YOUR PAST
The thing that makes us listen to the past more than the future is because it has already happened, we feel compelled to follow historical events and evidence, and we believe if something has happened before it only makes sense they happen again.
The past has a massive hold on us, with flashbacks that are so vivid and dreams that haunt us of a painful past. You wake up in the middle of the night, soaked in sweat and you just cannot shake that haunting past.
But you ask, why should I challenge my past when I’ve had a memorable one that I will want to recapture.
Let me answer that question with another question….do you want to be stuck reliving the past because it was such a memorable one? Do you want to waste your present self focusing on your past rather than plotting a way for a better future?
I think the day you stop growing is when you start dying, it’s in our nature as human beings to evolve and grow. You wouldn’t want the story of your life to be like Peter Pan in Neverland. Peter had the privilege of not growing up, but every one of us has to grow up at some point, and that can only happen if we challenge our past.
THE ANSWER LIES IN THE PRESENT
The present is your gift. You wake up in the morning and God has decided you get to live another day. Another day to grow and make do with what you have.
Gratitude is underrated and I find that so many people underestimate the power that the present day brings. Only you have the power to change your viewpoint about the present. You can either see it as a blessing and seize the day or as a curse because of the past pain that afflicts you.
Seize the day because no one is promised tomorrow.
If you have had a painful past and it haunts you in the present, know that the past does not define who you are. Rather than drown in the pain and let it afflict you, channel that pain in the present and use it to forge a better future for yourself. Pain is unavoidable in life, they come in varying degrees but we just need to decide how it will affect our future.
And if you are stuck reliving the past because it’s more memorable than the present, the present suffers because of your detachment and so does the future which means there are no more memories to create.
So, I implore you to focus on the present as much as you can!
The future depends on what we do in the present — Mahatma Gandhi.
THE FUTURE NEEDS YOU NOW
Can you keep the faith? Can you detach your past from your future? Your future is a blank canvas, and there’s absolute power in that. Sometimes it feels like our future has already been planned out for us, but that is because we have been programmed to think that way.
Society tells us that because we look different, behave differently or grow up in a certain place, we are destined to have a certain kind of future. They couldn’t be more wrong!
The future has a lot of enemies, and your dreams and aspirations have a lot of enemies. Your past can be an enemy if you are a slave to it, your present can be an enemy if you don’t seize it, and detractors can be enemies if you listen to them.
The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams — Eleanor Roosevelt.
So, how do you navigate the relationship between your past, present and future? I will share with you five points you need to take to heart.
- The past does not define who you are and who you will become.
- Please don’t live in the past because it’s a dangerous place to live.
- The present is your gift, cherish and seize it.
- The realisation of a dream is expensive; your action in the present is the currency.
- Dreams and goals have enemies, including yourself, be prepared for the battle ahead.
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