Tag: Time

Photograph

Have you ever looked at a photograph of yourself and thought of how many things have happened to you since that picture was taken? All of the dreams and desires you once had, you may now actually have. All of the unexpected situations and roadblocks you have encountered, you now have the strength and growth that came from them.

One picture shows the passage of time. Time truly changes everything and it changes us. We can look back on a photo from years and years ago and realize that we are not quite that same person anymore. We have grown and experienced so much since that photo was taken. We can look back at where we were and many of us never dreamed we would be where we are today. Hold onto photographs for they are capturing memories and a person that is ever-changing!

When Friendship Fades

“You have three types of friends in life: friends for a reason, friends for a season, and friends for a lifetime.” – Ziad K. Abdelnour. Do you ever just sit and ponder life and the past? Maybe you think about past relationships, friendships, jobs, a particularly exciting time, or milestone in life. Sometimes we think of how things could have turned out, or we question if things could have worked out with a certain someone if we had approached things differently.

People come and go, it is a part of life, not one that is easy to accept, but one that does unfortunately happen. When I was younger, losing a friend felt like the end of the world, it filled me with such sadness. I often wondered if there was anything that could have been done to save the friendship, or wondered if I had done something wrong, the same goes for romantic relationships. I would say to myself “If only I had communicated more,” “If only x,y, and z, didn’t bother me so much.”

friendship2

Now that I am older, I see a loss of friendships and even relationships in a new light. It is still painful to no longer have someone in your life, but I look at it in a different way and that brings me peace. I truly believe that what is meant to be in our lives will always be. There is nothing that can take away someone or something in our lives that is meant to be there.

Ziad K. Abdelnour’s quote that I mentioned in the intro of this post is really beautiful and I find to be so true. He explains that friends come into our lives for a reason, a season, or a lifetime. This is true for all people and things in our lives in my opinion. I really believe that certain people are put in our lives for a reason, they are here to teach us, strengthen us, and help us grow. Some people in our lives are here for a season for the same purpose. Not all people in our lives today are meant to stay there for the long haul. My belief is that certain people cross our path for a special and particular purpose. Lastly, we have the friends that are meant to be with us for life, the “family” that we choose, the ones who have been there through everything.

I believe that we should definitely do all that we can do to save a friendship or relationship that we value, however if it feels like you are doing all of the work, try to remember that anything that you have to force probably isn’t supposed to be there in the first place. As hard as having friendships fade over time is, I hope that you find peace in knowing that some people were not always meant to stay in your life, but you will always have the memories, lessons, and you will have experienced growth.

friendship

The Passage of Time

It hit me the other day…I was pulling into a parking space, just getting home from work. We had gotten a 10″ snowstorm the weekend before and as much as I love snow, finding enough parking after a storm can be quite difficult. I remember shortly after the storm, the snow was piled up all over the roads. As beautiful as it is, it made parking a little tricky for about a week. I remember coming home everyday trying to maneuver my car into a space. I couldn’t wait for the sun to melt some of it away. We had a really warm day the other day, it reached over 60 degrees and the remaining snow had melted away and that’s when it hit me…

A brief moment of sadness rushed over me as I pulled so easily into my parking space. I know this may sound crazy, but this small routine moment made me reach a large realization. I have heard this time and time again, but have always found it difficult to do…that is to live in the moment. As life unfolds, I tend to just go through the motions, or look to the future, sometimes dwell on the past, but hardly ever live for today and in the moment. There can be so much that we are missing when we are not fully paying attention to our present moment. Good or bad, as hard as it is, if we are constantly stuck in the past, or focused on the future, we are missing the here and now.

When we practice living for today, so many opportunities can flow to us, we are more open and focused on our surroundings, our energy and minds are set in the present moment. Easily parking my car, such a simple event, was what I needed to really push myself to try to live in the moment. I was so busy wanting the snow to melt so that I could park my car with ease, that when the snow did finally all melt away I missed it because I did not fully enjoy it while it was there.

Time cannot be taken back, if we focus on today, we can start getting the most out of life. This will definitely not be an easy habit to change, but I am appreciative of my own mini wake-up call. Enjoy each day and each moment, for time keeps pressing on and is soon to become just a memory.