Past, Present & Future

Past, Present & Future

Yvonne: Where were you last night?
Rick: That's so long ago, I don't remember.
Yvonne: Will I see you tonight?
Rick: I never make plans that far ahead.

- Casablanca, directed by Michael Curtiz.

The present is the key to success and happiness. Our past has driven us to the point where we are at now. Like it or not, where we are all the cummulative results of our past actions. We take the responsibility for it. We accept it and we learn from it.

The future has not revealed itself yet. But what we do for the present determines how the future will unfold. Maybe we cannot control all the factors that determine the future. Luck plays a part, as does fate.

But the things that we can control make all the difference. We can determine how we react to the world. We determine what action to take in response to a situation. We become a victim of fate only when we lapse into "unconsciousness"--when we are not mindful of our words and actions.

When we do not try to consciously fill every present moment with thoughts and actions of our own choosing, our baser instincts will gladly take over--we become slaves to emotions such as anger, fear, hate or jealousy. When that happens, we are merely a conduit for the painful energies of the past to continue influencing the unfoldment of our future in a negative way.

Start with forgiveness. Forgive ourselves for our past failings and forgive those who have hurt us before. The act of forgiving is a powerful one because it frees us from the painful energies of the past. Once we are free from the contaminants of the past, every moment that presents itself becomes virgin soil, full of nourishment and promise. We can then seize it and attach a seed to it--a positive thought or action--that will bear us fruits in the future.

That's all we do: we plant the soil of the present with our seeds and Nature will do the rest. A seed does not need to plan how to grow into a tree. It merely grows into one.