A Trick I Learned from Future Me

To be reserved or to take that chance? To be reckless or more calculating? To wait for the world to deliver your dreams sometime in the future or to start accomplishing your dreams yourself, now?

There are times when the answers are clearer than others, and there are times when you simply need a good kick in the butt. At other times however, the best choice might be a long way from obvious. I find weighing the pros and cons can only get me so far because I know that if I allow myself the luxury, I am able to talk myself in or out of almost anything. So in the end, which is the right path to take? When I don’t know, I ask older-me.

Older-me is who I envision myself being in the future. The years-from-now-me, with bones aching and smile lines worn deeply into his skin, sitting on a rock somewhere in the world. If I was able to sit down with this older version of myself, what would he tell me? What would we laugh about? What would make us both tear up? Would anything make him lean over and grab me, as painful as it would be for his frail body, and shake me, trying to instill some sort of sense into amateur-me?

Older-me tells me to take that chance. And he smacks me when I am being an idiot. That doesn’t mean I don’t occasionally still do some impressively stupid things. I’m human. But older, future-me has kept this lucky bastard out of the pool of regret and at the door of opportunity more times than I can count. I thank him. I figure by asking what future-me would do in my present situation, I am acting with a wider perspective, and acting with intention instead of out of reaction.