Saturday, July 11, 2009

REGRET

I never lost one minute of sleep worrying about the way things might have been.
- Creedence Clearwater Revival (Proud Mary)


Regret is the act of passing judgement on a past action. But just as you should forgive others, you need to forgive yourself. Hindsight is always 20/20.

Of course, the paradox is that it is what you learned from the past action that is now making you regret it. Mistakes are how we learn. You have to touch a flame to learn it is hot. But you can't go through life wishing you had never touched it.

The problem with regret is that it keeps you focused on the past, which isn't real anyway. When you find yourself looking back in regret, catch yourself. Stop. Take a deep breath. And ask yourself if there is anything you can do in the present moment to correct your past action. If there is, do it. If there isn't, let it go.

As hard as it may be, you have to surrender control. Remind yourself constantly: Everything is as it should be. What's done is done.

Don't spend so much of your life looking backwards that you can't take advantage of every single PRESENT moment you have.


The world is sacred. It can't be improved.
If you tamper with it, you'll ruin it.
If you treat it like an object, you'll lose it. (v. 29)

3 comments:

  1. I agree with this post very much. Every mistake -- no matter how major or trivial -- has made each of us into the person we are today. Learn from those mistakes and you can become a wise person indeed.

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  2. Its not jest the past actions, it is also the wishes and curses we made. With the present outcomes we can remember the wishes and curses we made. 1. for the wishes we need to connect the dots to be with tao. 2. for the curses, we can make a good wish to to undo.

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  3. I too agree with the postings here. I am also aware that the past defines the future. I have a single regret about the past that I cannot change in the present or the future. Don't get me wrong I have more regrets than just one but only one that truly bothers me. I know I must let it go. And by it I mean a person. Even though I've let it go, it will forever remain a major part of me leaving no room for others. Even if I were to find a suitable replacement, I would repeat the same mistakes over and over again. It's not fair to the person. Therefore I will not do it again. Regret has taught me some aren't meant to have some things in life.

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