The Past Is A Great Teacher But A Horrible Master!

A couple Sundays ago, as my pastor preached he said that the past is a horrible master.  He followed it up by saying that it is a great teacher.

At first I didn’t think much of this quote.  It seemed like another cliché that tried to convince us to let go of the past and not let it control us. However it didn’t just go over my head, rather the more I thought about this quote, it actually did mean more than that.  The notion that the past is a horrible master certainly points to the fact that it will be unwise to let the past control us. 

The insightful part is being able to see the complexity by also stating that the past is a great teacher. There is a distinct difference between those 2 sentences.  When looking at our past there is value in using it to shape our future.  But it shouldn’t control our future!

Photocredit: Anthony Waite

During my days as a freshman at university, for some reason, I found my courses really tough bearing in mind that I hated the fact that I was in a microbiology class rather than a medicine & surgery class. I hated the university I attended, I hated everything about it: From the congested classes, to the lack of facilities, to the teachers who all seemed unapproachable, and the fact that home was just few miles away whilst I was always dream't of studying in a foreign university, everything just seemed to be wrong (laughs). 

My mind set affected my learning coupled with the fact that my parents tried their utmost to see that I travelled overseas to continue with my studies but none of their plans fell through. Before I could bat my eyelid, I was in my final year, my grades not great which is ironic for a girl who I think has some brains (laughs). I told myself that I will just manage to get through this and that’s me done. I will never see the 4 walls of the university ever again as a student.

Fast forward just 3 years after my 1^st degree, I commenced my masters in a foreign university (dreams come through lol) and 3 years after that I started a doctoral research. Now remember this girl who hated university due to her past experience & said she would never go back to university? But here I am! For my masters, I smashed my courses, not because I got smarter but I ‘Learned’ from the past without allowing the bitter memories control my future.

I have had some relationships that ended well, and some that ended really sour. For some of them I don’t mind keeping in touch, for some others, it’s a case of we can be “cool from a distance” but in all my relationships, I just keep learning because I still have a long time to live if Jesus tarries and all the knowledge will be really helpful in the future. Stereotypes are formed most times when we let the past control our future. Some individuals have actually gone from being straight to being gay because of the experiences they have had with a particular gender which is very insensible reasoning in my opinion.

The key for me is improve. Are you learning from the past mistakes and working to improve over time or are we too scared to take risks based on our bitter past? Be it in relationships, business or just life in general?