I’ve had times when I longed for times past, hung up on fond memories. Truth is though…and I’ve learned this well in life…you can’t go back. You can only go forward. You can try, but it’ll never be the same, and the only way to get anywhere at all is to go forward, not backward.
I guess what brought this line of thinking on is a funeral I went to this morning with my daughter. It was for a dear, wonderful man who touched a lot of lives. We saw people there that we haven’t seen in a very long time. I met a Facebook friend there who I’d never met in person, too. Turned out she had also known Ed for a really long time.
Anyway, I got to thinking about how short life can be, though Ed lived a lot of years. But none of us knows when our time will come. Sometimes it comes quickly, with no warning. Sometimes it’s after a long illness when the end of that kind of suffering is quite welcome. But it’s a point at which we all will reach someday. Maybe for me it will be tonight, or tomorrow. Maybe it will be 20 or 30 years from now. I don’t know any more than most of us know. But what I do know is that when my time comes and I meet my Lord, I hope He won’t find me dragging my feet, looking longingly at what’s behind me. I hope instead, I’ll be right there in the moment that’s happening, and moving forward with a smile on my face.
Oh don’t get me wrong. I will still reminisce from time to time. I’ll still cherish moments reuniting with old friends and loved ones. I will relish moments when we can move ahead together. It’s different than what we sometimes have a tendency to do though…when we try to recreate feelings and moments that are gone. And anyway, it seems to me that we sometimes recall moments much better than what they actually were. 🙂
In any case, I realized I haven’t been here for about a week. It’s been a busy week. Glad to be poking in again, and hope you’re all well.
Love and blessings,
Anne