There is a mindset you must possess when tagging up at third on a fly ball. You know, when the game is tied and coach is telling you that you need to get home. You watch until the ball is caught and you take off. You have to keep your head towards home plate. If you look back for one second, if you doubt that you're going to make it home for one second, that outfielder is going to throw you down and you will be out.
Life can be like that sometimes, forcing you to focus on the future and let go of what's behind you. I know how hard it is to move past the mistakes, bad choices, heartbreaks, or "failures," but you must. Deep down, we know that we cannot spend our lives dwelling on the past if we ever want to grow as people. It will take time to let go, to heal, and to forgive ourselves. We need to acknowledge that our mistakes weren't made due to our inability to succeed, or lack of knowledge of what is right. The truth is, most of our mistakes occurred because we let our emotions overrule our own logic. We always knew the right choice deep down, however, we simply chose to ignore it. That doesn't make us foolish or unprepared for a future. Instead, it makes us human. Because, much of what led to our "lows" in life, was exactly what we wanted at that time.
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Accepting our past will always be the first step towards moving forward. It's going to take time, and you should take all the time that you need. But don't linger. Motivate yourself with the knowledge that you have decided to try to move forward. Appreciate the change you are making to move forward, and allow yourself to be strong enough to do so. When you make this choice, there’s no looking back. You have to keep going. Even when it's hard. When it hurts. When it sucks. When you want to go back, look past it and push forward with relentless vigor. Sometimes the path may be lonely or scary, but you must keep going. Wake up and tell yourself how far you have come. Try something new. Buy something new. Become something new.
You must look forward because the future is where you'll live the rest of your life. The today's and tomorrows are what matter because those are the only days you can make a change or do something amazing. Those are the days that bring new opportunities, relationships you're meant to be in, and more joy than you could possibly fathom. My coach used to tell me, "why keep reliving that one at bat in your head when you could be out there hitting home runs instead." He was right. The past ceases to exist when we stop thinking about it. We can't go back and change things even if we wanted to. So we might as well turn our focus to the time that we could actually do something extraordinary; a future that, in 60 years, is going to actually be worth looking back at.
So, even if the future may seem scary, don't go back. Even if the past is familiar, comfortable, and you know what to expect; going back is a mistake. Knowing the game is on the line and deciding to turn back to third because the thought of getting thrown out is too hard to accept, is a mistake. So, bite the bullet and trust yourself because I can guarantee that you will never be safe if you’re constantly looking back.
