Musings: As we move ahead, let's remember to look back

As we enter the new year, it is worth reflecting that January is named for the Roman god Janus, who had two faces. He could look in two directions at once — forward and backward, to the future and to the past.

January was put first in order among the 12 months by Roman dictator Julius Caesar just for that reason.

Janus, whose name comes from the Latin word janua, meaning gateway, served as the god of gates and doors, of entrances and exits.

The Romans prayed to Janus at the beginning and end of any important action, especially a war.

While we do not usually celebrate “two-faced” people, the ability simultaneously to take comfort from the past and find hope in the future is at the very heart of the human experience and has been since ancient times.

Among Asian philosophers, the ideas of past and future are often paired together with looking within and looking without.

As we look forward, we think about future goals.

While we often talk in terms of “turning over a new leaf,” as if we want to stop a bad habit and start afresh, the leaf in our reference is a piece of paper in our book of life. It is a metaphorical “clean slate” on which to start the new year.

It is natural to dwell on what we want to change when we look forward. Instead, we should think about creating new opportunities. When we look backward, our focus should be on learning lessons from the past in order to grow in stature and service.

Finally, in addition to looking backward and forward, we must look within and without, alert to others, lessons, and opportunities. Only then can we make the best use of our time and talents and make every year, a “Happy New Year.”

— Robert A. Scott, Manhattan

The writer is president emeritus of Adelphi University.