Past, Present and Future

As I mentioned before, Emerson's Self-Reliance has truly impacted my life. If I could I would write all my blogs on him but there were two quotes that really stuck out to me. The first one I wish to write about first is the one that says, "Speak what you think now in hard words, and to-morrow speak what to-morrow thinks in hard words again, though it contradict every thing you said to-morrow". This is very touching and amazing because sometimes we hold back from saying or doing things because we feel like we will be judged because of our past actions. I know this holds truth for parents. How can you punish your child for something you would practice in the past when you were their age? Is this not a contradiction? But Emerson helps us understand that who we are today evolves from who we were yesterday and what we have become is a result of our past foundation. I find myself holding back on things I want to say or do because I feel like people will look at me wrong. If I stand for something in the past then I should still stand for it now right? Wrong! We are people and we change our views as often as we change our shoes for new ones. I think it is important to keep an open mind and challenge our views with present ones. I do not believe in things being set in stone. I wrote a blog previously about Mrs. Dalloway and things we view as mistakes. I do not think we should view things so negatively, even if they are a mistake we have the power to change it into something positive. We must learn to be satisfied with our lives no matter what and learn from those mistakes. They are what help us from falling back in the same spot we did in the first place. And thanks to Emerson, I have learned something knew; Speak what you think today and do not worry about the past because the past is just that.