It’s officially Fall.

If you’re anything like me, that bubbles up all the warm and fuzzy feels – even if it is still hot where I live. There’s something so nostalgic about this season that wisks us back to days gone by. Whether it’s the memories of family gatherings, traditions centered around seasonal accessories, the smell of food and drinks that hypnotically lure us into an excess of caloric intake, or the cinematic genre of ‘holiday’ that somehow never gets old. These things seem to all say,

Ahh, those were the good ol days.

LIES!!

Wake up and smell the pumpkin spice!

When we get stuck in the pattern of thinking that says “we lived the good life back then,” we will never appreciate or cultivate the best life now!

This may be hard to swallow, but I have news for you, the memories that are framed and hung on the wall of our hearts like Norman Rockwell paintings are just that – memories – painted and framed to capture a specific moment and feeling, they are not real life. Your past is, just like today, full of the good stuff nestled right next to the hard.

We often long to go back to the times when things were more simple. But were they? When we were in them, we didn’t know they were simple. It’s not that we didn’t have struggles, we had different struggles.

So, now that our yesteryear bliss is shattered, and you’re wondering what happened to this Joy Bringer, let me explain.

In order to maintain joy, especially in the holiday season, we must stay present. There is nothing wrong with reflecting on and appreciating the past, but we must be vigilant to not allow it to cause disappointment in the now.

I can say all of this because I’ve lived through this sneeky reality. The past can suck us into a vortex of comparison that colors everything current as second rate at best. For so many years I’ve approached things like family gatherings for the holidays with such distain because they look nothing like what used to be. The people aren’t alive, the place is different, and there is no one who I can reminisce with.

A choice has to be made and I choose now. I’ve spent too long trying to choose back then, but back then doesn’t choose me – or you. It can’t.

So what can we do?

Take the past off the pedestal of perfect and embrace the beauty of now.

When we choose now, now chooses us. It’s a mutual relationship. Now can give back in real time. Now wants to be chosen. If we do, then we stop being victims of our past, and instead, we become partners with our present.

Let’s choose to be in the now this season. Let’s let the past twinkle and shine with the yesteryear filter on it, and let’s see the now with new lenses. Now is bright. Now is full. Now is ripe with possibilities!

The good ol days now!

Joyfully present,

Season