Folklore: A Taylor Swift Inspired Hope

Day 1 of 17: Digging Up The Grave

Read Deuteronomy 32:7 & Philippians 3:12-14 (The Message)

In my defense, I have none For digging up the grave another time,
-Taylor Swift, The 1

As human beings, we struggle with the past. On the one hand, we struggle with romanticizing our past. We especially do this on the national level: where we pretend our country and its history is perfect.

On the other hand, when it comes to our individual pasts, we often struggle to move on. We become trapped by it. The past should neither be viewed as the holder of a perfect bygone world, but neither is it meant to keep us trapped, unable to move forward.

The past, if we have the courage to face it, can teach us and encourage us to do and be better. Pretending the past was perfect, does no one any favors, except those who benefit from lies and distortions. And yet, the past is not meant to keep us trapped. Too often, especially when it comes to our individual stories, We obsess over our own histories to the point where it makes envisioning the future, let alone living in the present, impossible.

Taylor Swift is the queen of turning her past pain and sorrow into the inspiration that propels her forward. In her music, she reflects on past relationships and friendships that have collapsed. She captures the nostalgia of old relationships that she was convinced would work out and she describes the longing of “what if.” And yet, she also moves forward. She lives in the past only so much as it provides her inspiration for her art. But her past hasn’t kept her from becoming successful.

For most of us, our individual pasts become a yoke around our necks immobilizing us. Instead of a source of inspiration that could perhaps feed our art and propel us forward, the past becomes a prison. We believe, perhaps unconsciously, that if we relive our past to the point where we dissect every single decision we have made then we could somehow prevent the outcome that caused us so much pain. But this type of obsessive focus on the past is not what I would call, “learning from our past.” To learn from our past—our individual struggles and pains—we need to be able to eventually let go of it. God provides a different way of understanding our collective and individual pasts. I don’t believe God wants us to say, “What happened is in the past. Oh well. Time to move on and forget about it.”

Pretending the past never occurred helps no one. But God also doesn’t want us to be so consumed with the past that we can’t move forward. God wants us to acknowledge our past—the triumphs and failures, the pain, and joy—and recognize them for what they are: one part of our stories.

Our past shapes us but it does not define us. God will not change our history, what has happened, can't be changed. There’s no going back. But God provides us with the strength, courage, and hope to critically explore our national and individual pasts in order to create a better today and tomorrow.

Prayer

Dear God, Help us to remember that we can learn from the past and not let it entrap us. Help us to recognize that while we cannot redo history, we can ensure we don't repeat the same mistakes. Reflecting on the past doesn't mean reliving it for all eternity.

Reflection

How can we, individually and institutionally, understand and learn from the past without becoming so disheartened we refuse to act to create a better world?
How is God calling all of us to understand our individual and collective past?

Naiomi Gonzalez

Day 1 of 17: Digging Up The Grave

Finish reading this 17-day devotional in the app. Find it on the Featured shelf.