It’s easy for our past to creep up and overwhelm us. We get caught in its current or the remnants of what’s been. Past wounds linger on and land in the moment of now clouding and twisting everything we do. Rarely do we have complete clarity to see what is as it is.

Moving forward means making peace with the past that still haunts us. The first step comes in being courageous enough to see what that means for us. In order to deal with the past we need to understand what it’s asking or trying to show us. Calling it out is the first step and the easiest way to do that is to write it down. Once our words meet the light of the page transforming our past has already begun. Understanding and owning our choices heals what haunts us. Naming our fears has the unexpected benefit of liberating us in all kinds of ways, both seen and unseen.

What we’ve spent our lives trying to avoid looking at are the very things that can set us free, our past wounds come back to remind us of this truth. They point us to what’s unfinished, what holds us captive, or keeps us stuck. What is that for you? Do you always rush into things or hold back? Do you consistently pick harmful people to pull into your life or isolate? Can you speak up for yourself or do you remain silent? Do past regrets color your current choices?

Take a deep breath and a deeper look. Healing begins right there, by being honest and taking a closer look at our world, what’s in it, and how we feel about it. Liberation from the past comes when we finally face the things we tell ourselves we never could.

In the end it’s by cultivating greater consciousness that lets us make peace with our past.

kb