Which could be interpreted to mean, do not think about the past - it is today and tomorrow which matter. On the other hand, human beings live sequentially - each one of us is the sum of all our yesterdays. We would not be the people we are today, were it not for the people and experiences in our pasts.
I guess that the use we make of our experiences is what matters. When bad things happen to us, as they surely will, sooner or later, it can be tempting to allow that bad experience to define who we are, how we approach and interact with everyone else. And to a certain extent, such caution is necessary; in the words of the old proverb "The burned hand teaches best." We can learn lessons from our past experiences, that is for sure.
But the natural human bent is to look forwards, rather than back. I love the words attributed to Kalidasa, which are quoted in the UUA hymnal, Singing the Living Tradition:
Look to this day!
For it is life, the very life of life.
In its brief course lie all the verities
and realities of your existence:
The bliss of growth,
The glory of action,
The splendour of beauty;
For yesterday is but a dream,
and tomorrow is only a vision;
But today, well lived, makes every yesterday
A dream of happiness
and every tomorrow a vision of hope.
Look well, therefore, to this day.
I do believe that today is the only day that really matters. We can learn from the past, but we should not live there. And we can dream of the future, but only as much as we need to, to plan the work we need to do today.
No comments:
Post a Comment