Looking forward...

There is just something about a photo from behind that I find so appealing. Looking forward towards where they are headed rather than looking backwards on where they have been.

The past is a great source of learning but it is only learning if we take pieces from it and put them into where we are headed. Bring our past into our future. We can't escape it so need to embrace it, learn from it and make it work for us in making our future brighter for having gone through those experiences.

We recently went back to Canada to visit family and attend our friend, Eric's wedding. The last time we actually saw Eric in person was when he came to visit us a couple of years ago while he was going through a difficult time in his life. It was hard not to have memories of those times come back when we saw him again. And yet, it was like seeing a more complete, happier person in front of us. The light was back on in his eyes and his heart.

We had known from talking to him, that he was on a happier road these days; that he had a wonderful, supportive woman in his life; and that, as difficult as his past had been at the time, it had brought him to where he stood today.

It stood as a testament of what I had told him back then, that things looked dark then but once he made it out of the dark, the light would be shining brighter than he could have ever imagined before. If we continue following the dim light for however dim it may appear, when we get to the light, it will open up a whole new, wonderful world we didn't know could exist for us.

It stood as a testament to me that I must remember whenever things aren't looking as bright as I would like, that this time shall pass too. The light will shine bright again. I have been through worse and made it through. Those dark times have made me appreciate the light so much more. Without those dark times, I would not see how bright and fortunate my life today truly is. What seems like pain and hurt now can teach you something so much more powerful and positive for your future if you open your heart to learning from your past.

My past has shaped who I am today. Today will shape who I am tomorrow. I just hope that I choose to learn the right parts from the past and today to keep me along a path of lightness. For when the light shines upon you, darkness cannot exist.

So here's to remembering the past but looking forward to what is ahead of you.