Life Chapters - Regret

Tomorrow Never Comes

We have no input to life’s clock even though we always seem to think we have tomorrow to take care of the things needing care.  To say the things needing to be said or to do the things needing to be done.  The problem with tomorrow is it never comes.  While we may think we have tomorrow this past week reminds us how uncertain tomorrow is, reminding us once again that our biggest regrets may be the words unsaid or the actions not taken.  This past week clearly reminds us how important it is to say those words and take those actions.

Looking Back

Time seems to sneak up on all of us and is something we can never get back.  What if you never let the people in your life know how important they have been to you or the impressions they make on your life, is it a regret you can live with when their time runs out?  What are the things you have missed out on because there is always tomorrow which never comes?  If you could go back in time to speak with a younger version of yourself, say 18 years old, what would you tell yourself?  If you either stepped back in time or you could leap forward to when you are 80 years old who would you want to ask for advice?  The 80 year old would say – go live your life.  Live it well, without regrets, without fear.  Live your life with purpose giving it all you have and never give up. “A life worth living might be measured in many ways, but the one way that stands above all others is living a life of no regrets.” – Gary Keller.

Regrets

Bronnie Ware’s 2012 book The Top Five Regrets of The Dying listed the top five most listed regrets by those close to dying.

5.  I wish that I’d let myself be happier.

    Remember happiness is a choice you make.

4.  I wish I’d stayed in touch with my friends.

    You fail at giving time and effort our family and friends deserve.

3.  I wish I’d had the courage to express my feelings.

    Many times your feelings seem too heavy to handle.

2.  I wish I hadn’t worked so hard.

    You spend too much time making a living and too little time building a great life.

1.   I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.

          You decide to settle for half-filled dreams and to live with unfulfilled hopes.

So are you living a life of no regrets?  Do you know what is most important and what matters most?  When you look back on your life it will be the things that you did not do that will plague you the most with feelings of regret.  “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do.  So throw off the bowlines.  Sail away from the safe harbor.  Catch the trade winds in your sails.  Explore.  Dream.  Discover.” – Mark Twain.