Quote:
Originally Posted by Angela  I And I say, that is an illusion (cuz I know you hate the "f" word  ). |
You're funny!
I enjoy discussing this with you. Now back to business.
1. From
my point of view the past exists in a variety of contexts. It is no more an illusion than the present. Seconds are fleeting and they become the past instantaneously. I understand that for you it doesn't exist and that's OK.
2. How we
react to past events is independent of the events themselves. An event takes place. There could be reactions from many sources. They have no effect on the event. For example an explosion occurs. Some people are killed, some are hurt, some aren't touched at all. Everyone has a reaction, many different from each other. This does not change the occurence of the explosion. The event is the happening. How you react is the emotional response to it.
3. I don't find it practical to deny the past because, as even you have said, you can learn from it. To disavow it or renounce its influence on the present is a form of denial. Why to we have Memorial Day? Why is it good to honor past heroic deeds and people? There are events that we should remember and hold in our hearts. Do those 'pasts' not exist in our memories? What's wrong with that?
Where I do agree with everyone is that you can't let the past ruin your enjoyment of present. That's much
different from saying it doesn't or didn't exist. I think to deny it is as harmful as letting it affect your life adversely.