Because we’ve not managed to change anything, we continue to hold on to our past and that stops us from moving on. We tend to wait until something changes before we let go.
Unfortunately, it’s not always feasible to change the past by correcting something in our present. We can correct something in our present, but that can never erase the past. We can only change how we see that event or issue. Whatever we go on to change will never be what we’ve left behind, but it’s better than nothing and a good alternative to doing nothing. The act of doing something new should be enough to let go of an issue in our past.
In my own case, when I learned to look at my life objectively, my mindset began to change. We can't change our past, what’s done is done, but we can change and move on from the past by understanding our life choices and by changing our perceptions on the various issues we have that are stopping us from moving on.
I haven’t corrected everything I’ve done in my past and that’s okay, but I’m not even sure we really need to. We must understand our past and be okay to relinquish responsibility of the things we weren’t responsible for and that should help us move on. Own and understand what’s yours and let go of the rest.
For myself, if I hadn’t changed my perceptions, I’d still be living in the past and wouldn’t be writing for or running The CP Diary now.
I've learned with the help of my mom, to let go of the past.
She always said to let go of the past, what is done is done and we can't change it. But she had to tell me this a lot until I finally got it.
Thanks Lisa. Your mother was so right, but I have found over the years it's something we have to continually work at, a work in progress if you like.
It's often not the letting go that we have a problem with, but it's usually the trauma and our perceptions of a particular issue that we struggle with letting go of, particularly if we're feeling guilty about it.
Consciously we may let go, but unconsciously we don't always. That's the part most of us will find difficult. Replacing a bad experience with a new experience definitely helps.
While it is important to let go of the past in many circumstances, it is equally important to use certain chapters in our past to help guide us towards the future.
I can't imagine moving forward without the wisdom of my past.
Great point Tim and you're absolutely right in what you say. There is much to be sought from the experiences of our past.