There’s a poem by Linda Ellis titled “The Dash Poem” (https://thedashpoem.com/) that tells of a man speaking at the funeral of a friend.
He referred to the birth date and death date on the tombstone and said what mattered most was the dash between those years. It was the smallest thing on the tombstone, but it was the most important because that dash was his friend’s life!
I thought it appropriate as we begin moving into this new post-quarantine world to reflect upon how you would like to live your dash.
That little line that represents your life contains everything you have done, everywhere you have gone, all your relationships, lessons, sorrows, joys, mistakes, triumphs, regrets and blessings. All of them!
How much would you like to pack into the little line? How would you like to construct it from here forward?
It’s true that you cannot change the past, however you CAN change what that past does as you move forward. You can continue to carry your past around and build your future upon it, creating the same problems, using the past as an excuse for everything that goes wrong, for everything that you don’t do, for all the chances that you never take, for continuing to be miserable and afraid.
OR, there’s another choice.
You can be grateful for your past. Yes, it may have been hard and it may have been painful and contain things that you never want to repeat, but it also shaped you into who you are.
Your past taught you lessons. It showed you who has your back and who doesn’t. It brought to light strengths and resourcefulness deep within you that you had no idea were there. Your past brought you to this moment, right now as you are reading this.
That being said, your past does not have to be the bricks and blueprint for your future. It can be the suggestion for what you’d like to have and to not have, but it does not have to be the foundation for your future.
The saying “You’ve made your bed now you have to lie in it” does not have to be true. In reality, you are free to leave that bed, check out of that room and get an upgraded suite!
You are free to make new and different choices and leave all the baggage of the past behind.
“Thank you past for all you taught me and created for me AND now I choose something different.”
So from here forward are you ready to change how you are living your dash?
Is now the time to step out and launch yourself into something new? Is it time to make changes and shift the flow of your journey?
You have the choice how you live your dash.
Now is a good time to choose something different for YOU!
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Have you seen my Gratitude For Life Journal and cards?
They help you to be grateful for all you have … big and small … in your life.
The book is available on Amazon or both are available in my shop. Check it out here
