A Moment For the Past

Fantasies of the future are an integral part of our culture. We dedicate movies to imagined worlds. We write books about what one day might be. We imagine our lives next week, next month, next year, ten years from now. But amidst all of this imagining, we must leave just a little room for remembering.

We live in an incredible world. Things are possible for us that our ancestors could only dream of. There is and always will be progress to be made, but while keeping in mind what remains to be done, we must appreciate what we have.

Our technology enables us to fly, in a single day, across a distance that would have taken our great-great-grandfather's great-great-grandfather years to traverse.

We can communicate with people on the other side of the world at the touch of a button.

The music that pours through our radios on a daily basis would sound, to the Greeks, either alien or magic.

It is easy to compare ourselves only to our modern peers. And it is good that we do--it drives us to climb ever higher. But in the instance where that comparison leads to pain, depression, or feelings of worthlessness, it is time to remember those who have gone before. What was their lot? Would we trade places with them, given the chance? Maybe as a vacation -- but few or none of us would choose to permanently, irreversibly swap lives with the average human of ten thousand, one thousand, or even one hundred years ago.

Stay angry at the obstacles ahead -- but stay happy with what you have.