It Couldn’t Have Happened Any Other Way
How to make the most of our efforts given the realities of the past, present, and future.
Hi there - happy Sunday.
Today we’re jumping into a discussion of the past, present, and future. It may seem like a basic topic to discuss, but I hope you’ll realize, as I did, that there is a lot to unpack once you peel back a few layers.
So let’s jump in and I hope you’ll find some fertile ground for reflection. As always, thanks for reading!
Kevin
It Couldn’t Have Happened Any Other Way
What’s done is done.
Lady Macbeth
Our current reality is contingent on events that have occurred in the past. The way time works, everything builds upon itself in perpetuity. Every moment that passes creates an untold number of dependencies on the events of the past to create the reality of the present and the potential of the future.
No matter how hard we try or how much we’d like to change it, the events that brought us to the present moment couldn’t have happened any other way. For us to exist in this version of reality and experience the exact thoughts in our heads right now, nothing about the past could be changed. If it were, we’d be living in a different version of reality and having different thoughts right now.
While this sounds deterministic, it can be liberating.
Regret plagues us all, but wishing we did something different so we’d feel better in the current moment doesn’t make sense because had we done anything differently, we’d be living in a different version of reality.
This isn’t to say we shouldn’t learn from our mistakes and do things differently next time. Just because we can’t change the past doesn’t mean we have to live the future the same way. The only thing we can change is the future and the only way to change the future is to take action in the present.
Because our lives couldn’t have happened any other way, we shouldn’t worry about the past or wish things could have been different. The past is complete. It’s static. Everything that’s happened is solidified as the basis of our current reality. The past is the singular and universal foundation for unlimited versions of the future.
We exist at the intersection between the immutable past and the unlimited future. We should focus our energy here in the present because we can’t change the past or will a certain version of the future into existence. The only way to make an impact is to take action.
Our actions shape our lives and help define which version of the future becomes reality. If we want to become a bit better each day, we can’t spend our time trying to remold the hardened concrete of the past.
Every day we’re given a truck of wet concrete and the opportunity to do something with it. We can leave it in the truck and worry about something else while the rest of the world creates its own reality, or we can mold it, reinforce it, and ultimately shape the future.
Prompts
Do you believe in determinism, free will, or some combination of the two? How does this belief shape your decision-making?
When you see the phrase “it couldn’t have happened any other way” what is your initial reaction?
How can you take action in the present not only to create the life you want but to create the best version of the future?
Deep Dive
Temporal finitism is the doctrine that time is finite in the past. Aristotle, Kant, Greek philosophers, and modern physicists all have interesting ideas about the finite or infinite nature of the past and the future.
Thanks for reading! I’ll see you next Sunday.
Kevin
I agree that the past is static but I ALSO believe in the power of perspective and our ability to change our narrative about the past in ways that help us in the present.