I am not complaining about my life. Not in the least. But, while I am still young and have a lot of life left in me, I need to make sure I don't make the same mistake that I made in my twenty's and thirty's. I am free to make new choices and decisions and I need to start now.
The truth is, I love my family, I love my life, and yet there are a lot of things I would have done differently if I had known where the path would have taken me.
Would I still be fighting those few extra pounds that I should have lost years ago? Would I have worn sunscreen even on days I didn't think I would be in the sun?
I certainly would have never take up drinking Diet Coke...or eating Girl Scout cookies! I would have eaten more salads and taken my vitamins. And I would have given up all the wonderfully decadent cakes and cookies and all sorts of sugar sweets that are now the occasional and unfortunate parts of my existence. I would have passed on the opportunity to taste mexican cheese dip and fried chips. I would have fallen in love with things that were good for me instead of holding out for the bad.
I would have tried harder when I was young instead of expecting age to bring me opportunity. I would have tried to get published more than ten years ago instead of waiting until now. I would have taught my children the importance of learning from the past and learning from the mistakes of others...and how I wasn't always right.
I would have looked after myself better instead of looking to a man to take care of me. I would have walked away from unhappiness sooner instead of staying in a situation that had gone bad long before I left.
I would have taken more pictures...saved more momentos. I would have been brave and adventurous. I would have embraced the rain and lived in the moment, but I would have planned better for the future...you know...if I had known then what I know now.
Until the next time...I'll be doing today what I used to put off until tomorrow!