Tuesday, July 19, 2011

The Past is the Past

Not long after writing my post on forgiving yourself a few weeks ago, I ran across the following quote:
"The past cannot be changed, edited, erased, or forgotten - it can only be accepted."
Wow! Isn’t that the truth? So often, I think we become too wrapped up in our past. Our past does shape our future; that is true. You probably wouldn’t be here reading a birthmother blog if it weren’t for placing your child which is something that happened in your past.  


But the past is just that – the past. No matter how much it hurts, how much regret we may have, how much we wish we could rewind and re-do the past, we can’t. We must live in the present. And I believe the best way to live in the present and move forward to the future is to accept the past for what it is. Accept the beauty of our past and accept the ugliness of our past. 


I’m not saying forget your child, forget what you have been through, or anything like that. I am simply saying that in order to move forward in life, in order to create a meaningful life, you have to accept that the past is the past. It is what it is.


Photo Credit



2 comments:

  1. Amen. Preach it!! :-) I have to remind myself of this all the time, in relation to my own adoption as well as in regards to other things that have happened in my past. Thank you for the encouragement to keep reminding yourself that the past...is past!

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  2. I love that you ended this with "IIWII". That's my life's mission statement...LOL. And this post is a great pick me up/reminder that all things move forward eventually. Swimming in the past has a tendency to drown any hopes for a future (at least in my personal experience). Thanks for the reminder. I needed it today.

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