It is easy to get caught in the rearview mirror. Bright lights dominate one’s view, and so many things are beyond one’s ability to see them clearly and contextually. The view can be so compelling that one misses the green light and calling to move forward. It is as if I have chosen to be stuck, unwilling to move, even when everything signals it is safe to proceed. I held onto my overwhelming desire to see what was behind me, letting it dominate my ability to embrace the opportunity of what could be.
What is behind us carries insights that can only be seen from this perspective. Lessons in context, connections that make sense with hindsight, and learning opportunities are just the beginning of what our pasts offer. I have found these to be personalised and shared, each unique in what it can offer. It is an opportunity that fades with time. It is also a lesson that can only be used when one is willing to forgive those involved, especially themselves.
What is in the past has limited value that expires over time. A friend went through a traumatic period with me. As we looked back, we found lessons that we shared and discussed. After a long period of learning and growing, we realised that we had accepted and embraced what life had to teach us. In a shared recognition, we moved on, never to return. Life has a mysterious way of changing the light and our focus when it is time to proceed.
Lessons have little value without growth and change. The old Biblical story keeps repeating: “Every priest goes to work at the altar each day, offers the same old sacrifices year in, year out, and never makes a dent in the sin problem” (Hebrews 10.11). As much as I would like to say that I am different, there are too many examples that suggest it is natural to keep doing what one has done, hoping that somehow, someway, things will be different.
Today is a green light; rearview lessons will be used.
