Monday, December 5, 2016

"And That's The Way It Was..."

Don’t ask, “Why was life better in the ‘good old days’?”
    It is not wise to ask such questions.
Ecclesiastes 7:10 
 
George Bernard Shaw is credited with saying, "If you cannot get rid of the family skeleton, you may as well make it dance."  Let's face it, every family has skeletons.  Every person in every family has things in their past that they would like to forget, from bad decisions to idiotic actions to embarrassing moments, we all have a past. We've discussed this issue before, but it bears repeating because, quite frankly, the past just keeps popping up and distracting us.  
 
I've heard the "good old days" stories and, I know this will come as quite the shocker, have told a few myself.  Yes, I grew up where we played outside as often as possible.  Yes, I grew up riding my bicycle to the store where I traded glass pop bottles for candy.  Yes, I grew up when bubble gum was only a penny.  Yes, I grew up when we couldn't wait for the Sears Wish Book to arrive (and it weighed several pounds). Yes, I did some really idiotic things and made some REALLY bad decisions.
 
But here's the thing to remember (from our last chat on this topic): everything in your past has helped to shape who you are NOW!  And everything that is happening to you NOW is going to shape who will BECOME! 
 
1.  Learn from the past.  It's a great teacher if you pay attention.
2. Don't dwell in the past.  You can't plow a straight line looking over your shoulder.
 

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