Look backwards to move forwards

Texture by Kim Klassen; Waterfront 7 Magic, 100% soft light

To look backwards for a while is to refresh the eye,
to restore it, and to render it more fit for 
its prime function of looking forward.
~Margaret Fairless Barber

Nostalgia. Memories. Reflection. Introspection.

Whatever you call it, it’s when you look back at life and past experience with mixed emotions. If you’re like me, there’s a few past experiences that make me shake my head and wonder….what was I thinking? Oh, thinking? Obviously, not a lot of that going on. But other memories, like the birth of my children and grandchildren, rank right up there in the top five best memories of my life.

As we get older, I believe we tend to become more nostalgic about our lives. Seems like when we’re going through it…living in the trenches….our minds are clouded with details and distractions. It’s only with some distance do we gain clarity.

Reflection. So important to our futures. If we are only focused on forging ahead, never thinking or learning from our past, we miss the opportunity to become the best we can be. Every experience we’ve had (good and bad) up to this point is instrumental in who we are today. And it’s our views and responses to those experiences that are key to what sort of lives we’ve chosen to lead now. The introspective adjustments we make in our thoughts, words and actions from those past events determine our next steps….and whether we face the future filled with hopefulness or despair.

So, it’s good to take a look backwards from time to time in order to see more clearly where we need to be headed as we move forwards.

Linking up with those who love to share at Life Through the Lens, Texture Tuesday and Texture Twist.