OUTGROW YOUR PAST VERSION – The past shouldn’t echo.

Letting go of past mistakes, regrets, or outdated beliefs is the key to personal growth and development. While the past shapes one’s future, clinging to it can hinder one from embracing new opportunities or becoming the best version of oneself.

Outgrowing the past doesn’t just mean forgetting it. It means learning from it and moving forward with a clearer vision. Just as a tree sheds old leaves to grow new ones, we, too, must shed unproductive habits, grudges, and fears to reach our full potential.

Growth is an enigma. Is growth a sacrilege? Growth is the soul of nature and life. So is the growth of emotions, binding people to the ultimate spiritual and passionate maturity.

“Is it my fault that my past didn’t grow and kept lynching and pulling back on me? Was it my greatest triumph to have come into harmony with my present?”

Depending upon one’s perception and acuity, the past can be a ‘good friend’, bringing serenity and positivity, or a ‘brutal enemy’, deterring one’s growth and clutching one’s own self’s emotional sanctity.

Meeting people from the past after a time lapse may present a different scenario.

The train I boarded forty years ago carried an emotionally vulnerable, physically fragile, and logically weak eighteen-year-old boy with loads of apprehensions and anxiety. Avi, who bullied me all through my childhood, saw me at the station.

I met Avi again five years later. He fostered my friable image all these years and was stunned to see the changed versions. The firm foundation and edifice of my accomplishments, confidence, and emotional poise crowned the façade of my vulnerability. Avi’s face revealed confusion and bewilderment as I responded very differently and casually to his characteristically stupid sarcastic remarks. He inadvertently tried exhuming my past weaknesses, which he was familiar with, but I have since moved on. He tried hard to deal with my transformed version, but he couldn’t breathe for long and collapsed into the waning oxygen of familiarity. He got out in a rush. It was most likely our last meeting.

A contented and happy TODAY dissuades one from stepping back into YESTERDAY because there is nothing to regret. It’s a state of peace and satisfaction. A weak TODAY pulls back the PAST, drenching the person in remorse.

Wasting energy on shielding rather than outgrowing one’s present emotional status thwarts one’s logical and emotive development. The human mind houses a rich reservoir of positive emotions and sensitivities that thrive on growth, not dissolute journeys into the past.

We live between the positive stimulus of the unforeseen future and the mental response to our present. In this space, we thrive on emotional freedom and intellectual power.

“Growth is painful; change is painful, but nothing is as painful as being stuck somewhere you don’t belong.”

The past strikes back like a demon, evading sleep, tormenting emotions, and causing depression on lonely nights. The mind habitually analyses and regrets foregone events, bygone relationships and faulty choices. Delving into the past and drawing sorrow and remorse from these unsolicited events is a nasty process.

HOW TO OVERCOME THE PAST? —

*Learn to avoid it–

Avoid people or situations that bring back doomed memories, such as revisiting a place where a traumatic event occurred or engaging with individuals who remind you of past failures. There may be some validity in not putting pictures of the deceased on the walls. The loss is felt through emotions and memories, and looking at the photos doesn’t bring positivity.

Visiting a place with tender déjà vu, where you feel a strong emotional connection to past experiences, can often cause pain and depression. It’s important to recognize and avoid these triggers to promote emotional healing.

* Accept growth patterns.

Everything around us is growing. Each living cell is replaced, and within a stipulated timeframe of approximately seven years, the entire human body will be replaced by brand-new cells. Emotions and intellect shouldn’t stagnate; they should keep growing. However, growth can sometimes be slow. Don’t be afraid of sluggish growth—be afraid of standing still.

*Choose and nurture positive people. They are the ones who support and uplift you.

The world is loaded with conceited people who discuss negative things, past situations, and relationships, thus pushing one into depression and remorse. Relationships encouraging intellectual, emotional, artistic, or spiritual growth are worth keeping—and should be sustained.

*Don’t Conceal Emotional Pain.

Reveal and release the emotional pain on the right person’s shoulder. Concealing it evokes reminiscences about past events or the people who inflicted them. Accepting pain and seeking support is the greatest strength and is vital to happiness and contentment. It’s important to remember that expressing your emotions is not a sign of weakness but a crucial step towards healing and personal growth.

*Let go of people and situations.

Don’t let people’s attitudes instigate your vulnerability. They leave the relationship without rendering an apology or communication.  There is a gradual acceptance that relationships are no longer a part of life.

*Indulge in your passions and hobbies.

When nothing works, you can pull yourself out of the doldrums and into depression. You have incredible vigour to foster hidden talents, passions, and hobbies, which can barrier the past and ensure a delightful present.

GOOD things to those who wait for the right time to grow — BETTER things come to those who don’t give up at any stage — The BEST thing comes from those who genuinely believe in themselves. Such people embrace growth and never look back.

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