I am currently reading a book entitled, “The Truth of Yesterday” written by Josh Aterovis. Josh states, “Our past influences every waking minute. It defines who we are today, whether for good or for bad. It has the power to affect the future in ways we can’t begin to understand … the past can come back and haunt us; torturing us with what might have been, taunting us with unrealized potential, terrorizing us with truths we tried to ignore, tormenting us with losses too great to absorb.” After reading this I just sat back in my chair and said “WOW.” It actually sent a chill up my spine.
I remember a time when I was letting my past strangle the life out of me and extinguish the fire of my soul. The influence of my past was so strong that it almost doused my fire, depriving me of the opportunity to fulfill my destiny, the purpose of life, for which we all so desperately search.
The past will shade our thinking and not let us fully realize that decisions being made are not the ones that will move us forward. Cast out that which prevents you from making a decision to learn from your past instead of allowing it to dictate the future, under false pretenses before it is too late.
As a LGBTQ individual, the fear of coming out based upon old societal thought paradigms will forever imprison one to a life of self imposed isolation and anguish. The past, grounded in fear, will become your future, if you do not decide to change course and reject that part of your past that is holding you back. Overcome the fear; face it head on. Learn from it.
Rest assured, the future will come, but it will be one influenced by the decisions made in the “now.” Do not arrive at old age, on the precipice of death, regretting the decisions made to not cast out the past. Purge your insecurities, your fears, whatever it is that is placing a regulator on your moving forward to become the individual that the universe has charted for you. The person we are meant to be is there waiting for us to decide to take the actions necessary to experience the grand transformation to personal greatness.
The past can consume us or it can serve as a catalyst for growth and self understanding. Which will you choose?