Journey and Story Sharing Blog
Celebrating What’s Behind and What’s Ahead
Written by: journeyoncanvas
05/30/2021 2:14 PM
Today I’m celebrating my 53rd birthday. I’ve made it pretty far on my journey. God willing, I still have a long way to go. One of my recent paintings reminds me of things that once were a big part of my life: the shed I explored as a child, the stove that was our hearth, and the tools Dad used to tend his gardens. These are all things of the past. I paint and I look back.
Yesterday, I was reflecting and feeling sad about the passing of life and time. Then I saw this quote: “You have to let go of what’s behind you so you can live the life you have ahead.” I have a bit of work to do in this department, but I’m not willing to completely let go of the “what’s behind” stuff. Some of “what’s behind” is full of warm memories and grounding stuff that I want to take with me to my journey’s end. As I celebrate my 53
rd birthday, I embrace the life I have ahead as well as “what’s behind,” and I feel completely and totally blessed. You will continue to see me obsessively paint the past, but don’t think that I am stuck there. I choose to be there, and I like it. Life is meant to be lived and remembered. Today, I choose to do both on my journey. Join me.
Don’t Mind the Bees, 2021
Today I’m celebrating my 53rd birthday. I’ve made it pretty far on my journey. God willing, I still have a long way to go. One of my recent paintings reminds me of things that once were a big part of my life: the shed I explored as a child, the stove that was our hearth, and the tools Dad used to tend his gardens. These are all things of the past. I paint and I look back.
Yesterday, I was reflecting and feeling sad about the passing of life and time. Then I saw this quote: “You have to let go of what’s behind you so you can live the life you have ahead.” I have a bit of work to do in this department, but I’m not willing to completely let go of the “what’s behind” stuff. Some of “what’s behind” is full of warm memories and grounding stuff that I want to take with me to my journey’s end. As I celebrate my 53rd birthday, I embrace the life I have ahead as well as “what’s behind,” and I feel completely and totally blessed. You will continue to see me obsessively paint the past, but don’t think that I am stuck there. I choose to be there, and I like it. Life is meant to be lived and remembered. Today, I choose to do both on my journey. Join me.
Journey on Canvas Blog: A Place to Share Hope on Your Journey
Journey on Canvas is a spiritual autobiography and spiritual journaling site. The Journey on Canvas Blog will give you ideas for your spiritual journal and give you opportunities to share your spiritual story. This blog is also a place to find hope on your journey. Read, blog with me, and enjoy!
Tears for Dancing, Age 42
The older I get the less I think about what I can get out of this life. Bad things happen here on Earth and no one is immune. I see my parents suffering, I watch terrible things happen to my friends and I see catastrophic events that create hell on Earth. Revelation 21:4 promises that someday God will wipe every tear from our eyes and the old order of things will pass away. I’m beginning to think that this promise isn’t so far away: it’s just waiting for us at the next stop. Maybe when we die we trade our tears for dancing and enter Heaven. Until then, I'm going to paint, I'm going to write, and I'm going to share when I find hope in this life. That's why I'm here at Journey on Canvas.
