Glory
Days
“The
art of living lies in a fine mingling of letting go and holding on.”
Havelock
Ellis
Remember
that song, Glory Days, by Bruce Springsteen? It talks about living in
the past—when you were a football hero, or the homecoming queen.
The last verse ends with the lines: “Well, time slips away and
leaves you with nothing, Mister, but boring stories of glory days.”
I remember going to my twenty-fifth high school reunion and
encountering the girl who had been homecoming queen our senior year.
She was a woman in her mid-forties, still wearing her tiara. Made me
wonder if she had never taken it off in twenty-five years, or
perhaps, nothing of note had taken place in all those years. “Glory
days, they'll pass you by...Glory days, in the wink of a young girl's
eye...”
I
look at child-stars and what early fame did to them
emotionally—Michael Jackson and Drew Barrymore come to mind. And,
Judy Garland. Glory days are hard to let go of, hard to grow up from,
and ever “bright and shiny” in one's mind—shinier than everyday
life, brighter than getting up, pulling up your pants and going off
to do a day's work. Those seem dull by comparison. But sixty years of
looking backward will give you more than a pain in the neck.
Holding
on the the past, whether it was glorious or horrific, saps the
strength and beauty from today. Wanting to recapture the glory of
one's youthful accomplishments, or good-looks, from “the good old days” is one
way to stand an impenetrable wall in front of the possible joy of
this day, this hour, this you. Holding on to resentments and past
slights from “the bad old days”, drains life-energy from your
adult body/mind and leaves you vulnerable to depression and disease.
Here are a few things to hold on to: hope, faith, love, compassion. Love
the you that exists now—not the one who lived long ago. Have
compassion for those who slighted you in the past and purge your
heart of resentment. Have faith that your life is unfolding just as
it should, and that you are exactly where you need to be. Have hope
that the future will be filled with joys and sorrows, and that you
will be well equipped to cope with both.
In
the Spirit,
Jane
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