The Internal Orientation
We often imagine time as a river, a relentless current dragging us away from the past and toward a misty horizon. But if we stop looking at the clock and start looking at the soul, time behaves less like a linear path and more like a compass.
In this view, Forward is not a destination; it is simply the direction the needle points based on the magnetic pull of everything we have already lived.
The Magnetic North of Memory
We do not actually experience the future; we imagine it. To do that, our internal compass relies on the Past as its True North. Every joy, trauma, and lesson creates a magnetic field that orients our present.
The Now is the center of the compass rose. It is the only place where the needle can spin. The Past represents the fixed points. It provides the coordinates that tell us where we are and, more importantly, where we have been safe before.
Seeking Comfort and Safety
We use time as a compass because the Future is inherently chaotic, a vast and trackless wilderness. By tying our sense of Now to the anchors of the past, we create a sense of predictability.
We do not just move forward; we navigate. We look at the Before to decide which Next feels the most like home. This is not about being stuck in the past; it is about using the past as a survival tool. We project our history onto the emptiness of tomorrow to make it look familiar, transforming a terrifying void into a map we can actually read.
We are not being pushed by the seconds behind us; we are being guided by the echoes they left.
By seeing time as a compass, the pressure to keep up fades. You are not behind or ahead on a track. You are simply finding your bearings in a landscape that you are mapping out as you go.
Would you like me to rewrite this as a short story or perhaps focus on how this perspective changes the way we view aging?
Holly B.F. Warren
Atelierista Artist Mind Wanderer Writer Optimist 