Some friends were by our house last night. One of them is a great story teller that loves history. He shared with us many stories of coincidences, how some traditions started, and theories about how some things are related.
What was fascinating for me was not only his level of knowledge and detail, but how different a perspective this is when you are always thinking about tomorrow.
Context and perspective are such good tools to use in trying to journey from the the past to the future. That is what our lives are all about. Who we were yesterday and who we aspire to become tomorrow. Where we have been and where we aspire to be tomorrow.
History can provide us with context and perspective that could be helpful. It gives us an opportunity to reflect on where we have been and how others navigated the stresses of obstacles, challenges and needs during their lifetime.
Students of history who share their passion reminds us of how narrow our lives are when we only think of tomorrow. Their stories remind us that becoming more self-aware of who we are and where we’ve been can help keep us from making many of the same mistakes when we listen to the story teller tell us of things that happened many, many years ago.