You have probably read in books that the name of the month of January comes from the Roman god Janus. Janus is represented as a two-faced deity and thus represents a transitional space, such as a door, or the new year. With one face he is looking in the year that's gone, with the other in the year that begins.
And so should every new beginning be treated: you should look both at the past and towards the future. Sure, don't forget to be in the moment, but ultimately, isn't this part of what living in the moment is? If you were always to focus just on the very here and now, you would not plan, you would not have any direction and most likely would end up in a devastating search for immediate, short pleasure. Happiness though, is not a quick pleasure (although these moments are essential to a good life too), but it is about being able to enjoy an achievement. It's not just about achieving something (although many times a goal can be enough), but it's about making the best of it and having it.
In regards to the past, at times you will be tempted to shed it away, to feel the urge to leave it all behind - especially the bad parts. Unfortunately, this is not something that can be really done. A past that lingers behind you will always linger behind you. Your past, with all its pain and anger should be contained - look at it, own it and put it in a box. The hurt will never really turn to something else: nothing can change the past, but you can look at it as your scars that show you the strength you had that you overcame those things.
You need to step into your life and see yourself as the main character in it. More than that, you need to know something that could change your life and that is that what others have done to you, especially the things that were out of your control, has nothing to do with you. Your life is your actions, your decisions, your preferences. The things you've been forced into or that do not represent you are not who you are.
And that's the task ahead: making sure that you do more of your actions, that you meet more of your decision and that you act more in accordance to your preferences.
Heraclitus, a Greek philosopher, said that the only constant thing in life is change. He was half right: while everything always changes, so much of it always stays the same. It's a funny dance, which may not be worth much thought, but one thing is sure: if things are to change, then you can do your best to make them change so that they are as much as possible as you want them to be. It's going to be hard to change the world and harder to change others, but this doesn't mean you can't struggle. The biggest struggle, however, you will find, is to change yourself.
Fraquoh and Franchomme
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