Adulting: Wish You Could Time Travel?

I would absolutely be tempted to time travel. Especially on rough days. It’s easy to want to step back in time and re-experience the better moments from the past. But… I just can’t dismiss the fact that I made a lot of mistakes in my past. I really don’t know how else to put it, but in some areas of my life, I was just plain wrong, even during the “good old days”. So, I can’t ignore that if I truly time traveled, I would have that same mindset, ripe with error.

I don’t want to go back to that mindset. I’ve had some polishing over the years, and I imagine you have too. I like my knowledge. I like the wisdom I have gained. I like the confidence that I carry. And all these things have come as a result of A LOT of days; I don’t want to lose any of them because they are too precious. (Note: I’m not by any means perfect: I still mess up. I say stupid things. I act too rashly. I stumble and fall. But I’ve grown.) I absolutely see the benefit of reliving special moments in my mind, but at the same time staying grounded in reality. ​ How can we stay grounded in reality? I think we can’t allow ourselves to become so wrapped up in the past joys that we start to dislike our present. It seems critical that we not lose sight of who we are currently, even while we decide to do a little reminiscing. (And while you might not be at a place in life you want to be, you are at the very least a survivor, which is worth celebrating!) Havelock Ellis says it well: “All the art of living lies in a fine mingling of letting go and holding on”. We should let memories bring us joy, but not rob us of the joy that we can have today.