People may tell you to leave the past behind you, but can you instead leave the past with you without letting it control you? Can you realize the past is real but not a prediction? Can you see the past has lessons but you have to bring those lessons to your life? Can your soul sing and your heart have hope because today is a new day and love is coming?

I always thought the phrases, “The past is the past” and “The past is in the past” pretty reductive. Sure, they are true as stated but the intent of both is more like leave the past behind because it doesn’t matter. But the past matters a lot. It shapes us and if we don’t control it, it can control us.

At my worst, I see the negative elements of my past as prologue for my future. But that’s only true if I don’t learn from it, don’t carry its lessons with me, don’t hold it close to me and let it suffuse. me. Learning to truly integrate the past versus reject it or treat is as a prophecy is a challenge, but it is a challenge that leads to hope.

As you read this I wonder:

* What are you still carrying with you that you haven’t fully integrated into the you of today?

* How do you make the past something that brings you closer to tomorrow rather than pulls you back to yesterday?

* Can you see tomorrow through a clear lens rather than letting the past taint it?

We need to live in today, with our eyes on tomorrow and our souls full of all that has come before. This fracturing is part of what makes the human journey so fascinating. Today, can you embrace all sides in balance and hold hope for tomorrow?

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