We don’t live in the past
but we think about it
as often as we try not to
It exists somewhere in our minds
subconsciously buried
yet always present
shaping our lives
our opinions, our decisions
our behaviour, our routines
our beliefs, our celebrations
and everything in between
We don’t live in the past
yet it lives in us

We don’t live in the past
but it is never forgotten
People remember
and sometimes use it
to get to us
whenever they want to
It lives in conversations
in the news
written in books
or quietly held in memory
waiting for the perfect moment
to return
to interrupt the present
to remind us
of what has already been
We don’t live in the past
yet it lives in the world around us

We don’t live in the past
but it walks beside us
And still
we move forward
learning
that we are not bound to it
only shaped by it
and that even with its weight
there is still space
to become something new
We don’t live in the past
but it makes us who we are

Mariam Shittu