There are three fields of experience in which mortals are interested—the past, the present, and the future. The first cannot be made over; the second is in the making; and the third is glorious with possibilities.
A wise observer has said that one of the best gifts a man can have is knowing how and what to forget. Most of us will agree with this, but without the help of Christian Science not everyone has the ability to forget what he knows should not be remembered. Much he would be glad to forget clings to the wall of memory as with hooks of steel.
Every student of Christian Science was once a beginner and brought with him the recollection of things he would do differently if the past could be transformed into the present. At first, the best he could do was to determine not to repeat his mistakes, as he had not yet learned how to forget them. Human will could strengthen his determination not to be caught in the same trap again, and human experience showed him where the trap was apt to be set, but they could not erase the scars it left. As his understanding of Christian Science developed, the scars of the past disappeared. It revealed to him that when each day's thinking was made to conform to his religion, there would be no regretted yesterdays nor dreaded tomorrows. The past would then carry for him only the good it contained and the lessons it imparted. In the words of Whittier:
