Out With the Old – In With the New

Remember those sweaty palms, warm cheeks, and tight chest when standing inches away from your first love, seconds before your first kiss? More than likely, you do. We remember many firsts in our lives, because good and bad emotions, if strong enough, stick in the recesses of our mind.

Since our fingers recently flipped the calendar to reveal a new year, we often look forward to new things. Maybe, we just want to succeed at some failed old things.  Our mind has usually just finished recollecting events from the past year, and we’re eager for a new start…another first.

Last week, I had a first – my first audio blog post. Now, I’m preparing to write my first book. Those are exciting first for me, but not all firsts are exciting. For fun, let’s take a look at firsts you might have experienced.

– first tooth you lost
– first bicycle wreck
– first time you broke a bone
– first snow
– first time you fell in love
– first time your heart was broken
– first test yu flunked(better or worse)
– first medal or ribbon you won
– first fight
– first time you saw the ocean
– first time you had to do something on your own
– first time you moved away from home
– first house as a child and first one you owned
– first surgery
– first baby
– first miscarriage
– first time behind the wheel
– first wreck
– first pet
– first time you lost a loved one
– first divorce
– first time you flew on an airplane
– first paycheck you ever earned
– first time you knew someone suffering from a serious illness
– first meal you cooked

Wow, it’s easy to recall so many on this list, isn’t it? Did your emotions spike or plummet, only to do it all over again? Each first  either evoked a pleasant memory, or it raised our blood pressure. Some we’d like to erase, while others draw us back, wishing we could live there again.

This joy or anger can remain with us the rest of our life. The firsts filling our hearts with joy, we love duplicating, and can often get lost in the past. Those memories sparking anger, we work hard to avoid; more often than not, by daydreaming about a future that will never arrive.

Life requires balance. The past has a purpose; so does the future, but we should live in the present. My husband, Steve, and I observe how many problems are created by living in the past or the future, so we conjured up our own saying.

The past provides learning experiences on which to build…to repeat, or avoid. A man must look to the future, or else he wouldn’t know where he was going. However, we need to live in the present. Liken it to driving a car. It’s imperative to keep your eyes looking forward on the road, glancing backwards occasionally in your mirrors. All the while, you must live in the present, being aware of your surroundings using your senses.

As you reflected on many of your firsts, I pray many made you think about some places you might want to go. But, after reading this, I hope you live in the present to the fullest.

Thanks for taking time to stop in, for sharing my words with your friends, for your comments, and for subscribing so this can be delivered to your inbox every week. God bless!

© 2018, Jena Fellers. All rights reserved.