Why is it we look to the past to measure ourselves , our lives? We look to the past and find our fears for the future. Looking into the mirror tonight as I drive home I see the place I have come from. The past. The brilliance of a Bozeman sunset. The rain of fuscia across the sky. The lace of intense light on the edge of clouds. Brilliance to be sure. Purples gain over pinks and orange and my day passes into intensity of night and darkness. All of this is just behind me. I know these now and can fear I may never experience such brilliance again. I can stay where I am and dwell on the past. The setting sun. And another day. Or I can continue to drive forward into the darkness of night, the unknown, appreciating my experience of what passes. I choose to not fear what I do not know of the future when looking into the past, to search for the truth of a future I do not know. Looking into the past to verify the future is the trap of our fears, not the embrace of the songs of our life we have yet to write. Night comes and the stars of the universe rise .