The past never lasts…
The past never lasts…except every morning, noon, and night when you can think of nothing else – nothing except what you did or said that you wish you hadn’t, or what someone else did or said that left you in a world of hurt and pain. Perhaps you have forgiven that person, or yourself, but still can’t get over the hurt from the past.
Well, you can. I am not diminishing the awfulness of what happened. But you have it within yourself to start fresh from today and leave what happened in the past behind you. It’s not about being perfect; it’s about deciding not to live in misery. You have passed through the experience. It was what it was. You cannot rework it to make it be any different. You may have gained wisdom, or strength, or patience, or humility, or just survived, and now there really isn’t any “action item” left to do. It’s time to take that file and move it down into the basement into “dead storage”. Can you tell I remember the days before personal computers?!) It’s still there, but it’s no longer part of your active files. You don’t need anything in there for your life from now on.
Perhaps you wonder if it is quite safe to leave the past behind you. After all, if it can happen once, it could happen again, and you need to be prepared, and look for the telltale signs that could save you from further injury. However, if you are focusing on what your partner did in the past, you are not giving yourself a chance to live a great life today. You will get hurt in this life, but you can process through it, and then when it is time, you can let it go. It can be over.
If you’re having trouble with letting past hurts go, make sure you are not spending time looking at hurtful texts, or social media posts that keep you stuck in the past. Life is in continual motion. Don’t look at pictures. Don’t look at texts. Don’t hold yourself hostage to the past. Love yourself, and give yourself a fresh start from today (whether you “deserve” it or not.)
