I was listening to the new David Gilmour song and one line really hit me.

Yes, I have ghosts, not all of them dead.

For me that is so true….. Often the ones which are not dead are the hardest ones to deal with. They can appear at any time. They fill my head with negative thoughts. Once there they can haunt me for days. Missed opportunities. Past mistakes. Errors. Broken promises. Heartaches. Dead ends. Let downs. Sad memories. Inhibitions. Self inflicted hurt. Bleak times. They can hold me back, stop progress, bring on self doubt and herald the return of depression.

Those thoughts still live within me. They aren’t dead. Ready to reappear when I drop my guard. When I am low. When I am tired. When I’m facing a leap of faith. They all relate to past events but the memory still lives on within me. They try to shape my present day mood and choices.

Maybe it’s time to deal with them. Exorcise them. End the hold they have over me. Life is too short to waste. Its time to fill my soul with positive thoughts and memories. Ghosts should be dead.

62 thoughts on “Ghosts”

  1. Wow… this was so good. Yep… we need to take our thoughts captive. I didn’t do so well with that today, but God brought something good out of it. He is really good at that.

    Liked by 4 people

    Reply

  2. Yes… it’s good to confront the ghosts when you are able.

    Off topic: Amazon has a good documentary, “Pink Floyd – The Making Of The Dark Side Of The Moon”, currently free here. “The Story Of Wish You Were Here” is also rated 4.5 stars but I haven’t watched it yet.

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply

  5. YES. I think they have more power now because of the isolation, the lack of contact with the here and now makes room for the past to creep to the forefront of our thoughts. We have to work hard, so damn hard, to exorcise those ghosts, and we cannot give up. We will be tired, we will be crack, but we won’t be broken because we are not alone now, nor will we be thanks to the love of those who count on us and the friends who always support us. xxxxx

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply

  7. Very well written! I can definitely relate. I have several ghosts that like best to pop up in unexpected places and trigger a watershed of memories. As Tina said there, the answer lies in taking thoughts captive. Some days are better than others but all I know to do is pick up and keep going.

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply

  10. I don’t think we can ever eradicate all of our ghosts.. I think its best to acknowledge them and hold the part of yourself that feels ashamed or whatever for JUST BEING HUMAN.. I think we are too much of a fix it up culture.. lets just acknowledge is human to have regrets and accept its just natural we cant know what we don’t know until we learn that lesson.. Be kind to you, I get it about needing not to let that block you from the good and the newly possible in the now. You are a great person and you have a lot of life left to live.. Big hug ❤

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

  16. I so agree! There are enough real, living things happening right now to keep us busy, we don’t need ghosts of past “woulda/shoulda/coulda” taking up space and time. Past is past… can’t fix mistakes from the past anyway, best to focus on today! And be kind and loving to yourself. Treat yourself like a cherished friend.
    💌💌💌

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  18. Is that a part of depression? After 30+ years of therapy and some final very wrenching sessions, I made the decision one day, out of the blue to sell my home in Washington State and moved back to New York (though certainly not to where I had lived). I arrived a new person, all my “angst” and ghosts laid to rest it seemed at last. No one was more astonished than me. I was on top of the world for 18 months and then came 2020. Was it this year that brought the ghosts back, was it that my new doctor made me give up oxycodone? Probably the latter, I think. It’s not an easy thing to do after 15 years and with no alternate pain management. The point is, the ghosts had escaped from the boxes I tied them up in. There they were again. For now at least they are back in their boxes, tied up, I’m not sure now. I suspect is you are prone to depression, bad experiences are always going to take your thoughts back. Somehow I got through the recent stuff. I suppose one just has to persevere and keep moving forward. Perhaps having finally faced the ghosts 3 years ago as I did, they lost most of their power over me. So yes, I think taking a stand is a good thing. Like most emotions, depression is so individual. I wish you strength Gary, although you seem very strong to me. Some times people are very good at making a front! XX

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  20. It is so easy to be empathetic and kind toward others, especially when they’re going through a difficult or challenging time. I read this somewhere and may not be quoiting it correctly, but it really struck me:
    “Take care of your words when with others. Take care of your thoughts when alone”.

    Our self-talk can make any given jay joyful or miserable, depending on whether we are being kind and gentle with ourselves or judgmental and cruel. I try to keep this foremost in mind when I wake up each morning and as I go through my day. That and prayer helps me a lot.

    Yes, ghosts should be dead. Unfortunately they are resurrected far too easily. as a wise woman once told me, “Don’t take that first think”. And I would add, replace the negative thought with something positive. Thanks for this, Gary, well said!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  21. I love this piece. You’ve written it beautifully and it touches a very true, painful place for all of us. The past can hold us back and too much reflection on it, especially those ghosts, can do us harm. We need to forgive ourselves. We need to be fully present in our lives. That is a difficult thing to achieve but, if we can, then we’ll become happier, more settled people.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

Leave a comment