Ponderings (October 2007) - “PAST”

According to Merriam-Webster's Dictionary …

Past is “having existed or taken place in a period before the present”

Sharing my thoughts …

This past weekend I attended my 30 year high school reunion!  I had a blast, and yet, as one of my classmates shared, it was an experience of mixed emotions.  It was great to reconnect with old friends and, at the same time, there was a hint of melancholy in the realization of how quickly time has passed.  This got me pondering about my relationship to the past.  Some past events and memories are pleasant and some are not; but, they all have become part of the tapestry of my life.  When I view my past with gratitude for how it has formed the foundation of my life and allow it to teach me, then I can honor and integrate the wisdom of the past while letting it go.  Relating to the past in this way enables me to consciously create my present and future life.  When I do this, I am filled with a sense of freedom and contentment.  What is your relationship to the past?

Questions to ponder …

1. How has your past positively influenced your life?
2. How has your past negatively influenced your life?
3. If you could, what would you change about your past and why?
4. What 5 things from your past are you most grateful for and why?
5. What actions can you take today to resolve past issues and move on?
6. Looking back at your past, what recurring themes/patterns do you notice?
7. What failures of the past are still haunting you?  How can you let them go?
8. What past successes are you clinging to?  How can you create new successes?
9. How are you the same now as you were in high school?  Do you like this sameness?
10. How are you different now than you were in high school?  Do you like this difference?

Related quotes …

You must learn from your past mistakes, but not lean on your past successes.  [Denis Waitley]

I’m growing old, I delight in the past.  [Henri Matisse]

The Past:  Our cradle, not our prison; there is danger as well as appeal in its glamour.  The past is for inspiration, not imitation, for continuation, not repetition.  [Anonymous]

What is past is prologue.  [William Shakespeare]

The past is a foreign country, they do things differently there.  [Leslie Poles Hartley]