I Can Remember A Time...

I was speaking with a friend the other day...he is several years younger than me.

At 73 years of age, most of the people I speak with are younger than me. Such is the result of living 26,645 (or so) days on this planet.

My friend told me at one point...as we were discussing something I can't remember (Such is the result of living 26,645 [or so] days on this planet.)..."This is probably old hat to you, isn't it? I'll bet you have forgotten more than I know."

The conversation with my friend got me to wondering...for several days...about
Remembering, and
Looking Ahead, and
The Path We've Traveled, and
The Path Yet To Be Traveled, and
Where We Planned To Go. and
Who We Wanted To Be, and...
well, it got me to wondering about a life at 73 years of age.

To remember is to remember it all...as much of it as can be remembered...the bad along with the good, the dark as well as the light, the losses and the wins.
To remember the gentleness, forgiveness, and joy as well as the roughness, bitterness, and agony.

When you are looking back and looking forward its important to be reminded that:
Nostalgia is the enemy of memory.  Looking back with blinders on is never a fruitful exercise.
And, Fantasy is the enemy of planning the future.  Looking forward thru rose-colored glasses is folly, at best.

I can remember a time when there was less to forget.

I look back on the way I have come, composed in equal parts of grit and grace.

I squint to catch a glimpse of the way ahead, an obvious mix of gravel and good pavement.

The past has not gotten me to where I wanted to go, and it has not made me into the person I wanted to be. Things have not gone as planned. And yet, here I am.

No matter if it be the way I have come or the way I have yet to go, it is quite obvious that most, if not all, of life's battles are fought within.

Thinking big and wonderful thoughts along life's way cannot take the place of actually doing good deeds...no matter the size.

There is a cosmic thread, a Spirit, a history, a future, and a present that connects all of us in ways beyond explaining, but not beyond experiencing.

At bottom, it is never a positive thing to live in the future or the past; its now that really counts.

Even when now is 73.