Those who are familiar with this blog know I am fascinated with time. Many of my favorite films and songs are devoted to this subject. This post is part of the daily prompt series and it has litebeing chronicles written all over it! I am incredibly analytic and have spent many hours ( translation – weeks) going over major decision points to see if I chose correctly. Maybe it started when me and my high school buddy began to play the ” What if ” game, trying to predict outcomes regarding our crushes of the moment. Then again, who knows.
Psychology or writing: turns out this is not an either/or question, but a multiple choice item(Both A and B are correct).
Quit the job or keep the job: guess what, it doesn’t matter if you don’t work on yourself!
Paper or plastic: just testing to see if you paying attention, April Fools!
image credit
What I realized eventually is that most of the time I made the best choices I could have under the circumstances. Most of my choices were not made lightly and while I often predicted an accurate and sometimes unfortunate outcome, I still did the best that I could.
There were a few situations I could have avoided had I not made decisions that I knew were dumb and made them anyway. When I was about 5 or so, my aunt kept telling me not to rock the metal chair I was sitting in all the way back towards the concrete. It was so much fun so I ignored her. The doctor who stitched me up said I was lucky I didn’t lose an eye.
Another time me and my teenage friends got high in the bathroom at a PAL ( Police Athletic League) dance. Who does that! Fortunately, a deal was made where my friend gave up her supplier in exchange for the cops not hauling our sorry butts to the station. Oh were we mad when they would not return our stash. I do not know what was stupider, getting high at the dance or actually going to the dance? Yes, I saw this outcome a mile away.
I have also considered do- overs and realize that I do not want to relive any part of my life. This is because I would have to give up the ripple effects that each choice created. I am simply not down with that. I do wish that I would have taken some sage advice a bit sooner. It would have saved me some pain and heartache, to say the least. Here are some pearls of wisdom that are worth mentioning:
Pick your battles wisely: I first remember hearing this in my twenties. My supervisor at the time was suggesting that I do not get upset about every little obstacle I encountered at the office. I heard the words, but disregarded them. She was so right about this. Energy is precious and I wasted so much of it on people and situations that simply were not worth it. Sometimes life is about more than winning. I see now that getting distracted with minutia is not the way to go.
Don’t talk about past lovers with your present lover: This gem was imparted to my in my late teens. The message went completely over my head and I did not understand its inherent wisdom. I thought that I could talk about anything with my boyfriends. I had a few of them help my process my breakups ( before we also broke up , inevitably). If you are more focused on your past relationship than your present one, that should be telling you something!
Don’t take your health for granted: Thank you mom, this was a good one. Until I hit middle age, I did not have a clue what she meant. I thought it was cool to have above average vision, 20/10 in both eyes. I was farsighted in a good way. I could see things from a distance before most people could. This made me quite valuable during a road trip! When my sight declined and I needed to wear glasses, I understood what a precious gift it was to have excellent eyesight. With every new ache and pain and ailment along the way, I am mindful to be grateful for all the vitality I still possess.
Love yourself: I saved the best for last. Again, middle age was a turning point for me in discovering my inner beauty. Before that I did not have the tools or perspective to really put this advice into action. When I look at old picture albums and see the sweet lovely girl and young woman I once was, I am amazed at how I did not notice it at the time. I was too busy comparing myself to others and judging myself for my ” imperfections”. I could have really used the extra confidence back then. The good news is that I have become much more comfortable in my own skin and can see my light shine from within.
This is truly a sign of progress. I can finally love myself with less judgement now and I don’t even have the 20/10 vision anymore. Maybe that’s why they say hindsight is 20/20.
related posts:
https://lindalitebeing.wordpress.com/2013/02/24/litebeings-guide-to-the-movies/
https://lindalitebeing.wordpress.com/2013/11/02/musings-november-time-warp/
https://lindalitebeing.wordpress.com/2013/06/10/timeless-tunes-updated/
litebeing chronicles 
Great insight, Linda! Thank you for sharing! ❤
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You are welcome My FB page started launching some old posts, lol!
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growing old is underrated 🙂
You nailed the reasons here Linda. I too, am grateful for having survived my own ability to ignore my better instincts. No regrets though, just grateful. Also, I shared your bravado about having 20/10, and those days are sure gone! No more eagle eye as the eagle has landed!
Glad to see you posting more again too! Missed you here.
xxx
Debra
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Hey Deb,
On a good day my 20/10 vision has relocated to my inner vision 🙂
Still working on forgiving myself for all of my errors, people i hurt, etc
Thanks for your encouragement, There are many more stories to tell, just a matter of energy and motivation..
I am so happy you enjoy my offerings 🙂
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Lovely post, you are so back Linda 😉 xox
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thank you, I am getting there 🙂
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Ugh…WP is being a meanie today!! For some reason it keeps freezing my browser thought strangely I just got a comment from SueDreamwalker saying my blog was freezing her blog each time too! Hmmm…
First of all…Hi!!!!!!!
Second of all: Loved this post and the advice!!
Third of all: I missed you! 😀
Fourth of all: You know the one about picking your battles wisely? I sometimes need to remember that these “battles” don’t necessarily have to be with someone else or a certain situation…even battles within ourselves can be tiring.
Fifth of all: I did that too!!!! Compare myself with everyone! Sigh…if only not…ah…but I agree with you…I don’t think I’d want to redo anything in my life…who knows where I’d end up 😛
Sixth of all: I think..I’m kinda sorta back 🙂
Whoo! 🙂
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Wow have I missed you, hope you are ready and find our community enjoyable. Your soul has to be fed first and I hope blogging and all its perks bring you joy 🙂
You are correct about battles, sometimes I can be my own worst enemy without even realizing it.
I hope you know how loved you are and what a gift you are to the world.
Hugs, Shree aka Anita aka Mindy lol
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thank you linda, i loved this post ❤
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thank you! I kinda put myself out on a limb, but it worked for Shirley MacClaine ( her book was ground breaking)
You will be hearing from me today.
xx Linda
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🙂
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You have included some Gems of Wisdom here Linda. and loved reading this post.. I think sometimes in Hindsight we can all look back and maybe laugh at our journey and where it has led us.. Its interesting isnt it how our childhood and teenage years jump back up at us .. We then look back at how far we have come.. If only we had the wisdom granted then.. But if we had I doubt we would have heeded it.. For those mistakes were and are all part of our journey and who we were to become today.. Without those experiences in life I doubt we would be who we are now.. So I give thanks for my falls and scrapes and mistakes..They taught me many lessons.. and strengthened me to be who I now am….
And I am so thankful our paths have crossed Linda.. 🙂 Hugs to you too xox
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Hi Sue,
So glad you enjoyed this Im “prompt” tu post, lol
There are some periods of my life that I would have preferred to skip, but not without missing the people I had met and the lessons learned. So you cannot have your cake and eat it too.
I am also grateful our paths have crossed!
xx Linda
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Lovely words of wisdom Linda, indeed~
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thanks Blue
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😀
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Very inspiring post Linda! I completely agree with you,I too, would never go back and change anything in my life! It made me the person I am today, and I am content and happy, Hugs!
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thanks Tazein, we do not have to go back, we can always remember the fun times and make peace with the struggles.
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“I have also considered do- overs and realize that I do not want to relive any part of my life. This is because I would have to give up the ripple effects that each choice created.”
Yup. I don’t regret the decisions I made because they all led to THIS door. And I like where I’m standing.
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If life was all simple and seamless, there would be very little to blog about!
Perspective really matters and thankfully it is subject to change. So what type of door is it?
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Thank goodness we both became wiser with our age… I was looking back on some of my photo albums and saw truly how pretty and great I was… such a pity I didn’t recognise it then… But now we can say with confidence… it is never too late to start taking care of ourself first…. because the rest truly doesn’t matter…. Take care, Barbara
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Glad that you can relate! Some errors I have made were obvious while other situations are much more subtle.
Time really does have a way of shifting one’s perspective.
Thanks for your support.
xx Linda
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You are beautiful form the inside out! 🙂
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thank you my friend
as are you 🙂
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