Live in the Present and Do Not Regret

In Walden, Thoreau wrote: We should be blessed if we lived in the present always, and took advantage of every accident that befell us, like the grass which confesses the influence of the slightest dew that falls upon it; and did not spend our time in atoning for the neglect of past opportunities, which we call doing our duty. We loiter in winter while it is already spring.

There is only one good reason to dwell on past mistakes: to learn how to avoid making the same mistakes today or in the future. Otherwise, we waste the gift of today by living in the regrets of yesterday.

And there is a second way to waste the gift of today – that is by living in the triumphs of yesterday. Do this, and soon enough be down to regrets.

To paraphrase Mr. Crabs, owner of the Krusty Krab on Spongebob Squarepants (and if you’ve ever seen an episode of Spongebob Squarepants, there is a good chance it was this one, since I’m pretty sure there are only six): “What is today, but tomorrow’s yesterday?”