WLKM Radio 95.9 FM
Funk and Wagnalls, the dictionary people, for those of you who have no idea what those words mean, say that that word regret means “to look back to with distress; grieve over; remember with longing.”
Regret is such a horrible sounding word. It isn’t a fun word to say, even if you are telling someone that they may regret something. It just doesn’t seem to flow off your tongue and out of your mouth very easily. In fact, you may regret using the word when speaking.
That’s the kind of word regret is! However, it is a part of all of our lives.
Regretting something is bad enough, but you have to live with that regret for the rest of your life, especially if you internalize everything like I do.
The other day, while scrolling through Facebook, I came across a post from one of my friends titled “The Top 37 Things You’ll Regret When You’re Old.”
Some of the items that are listed as potential regrets are things that I don’t, at least right now, consider as a regret. Such as not learning another language. Somehow, I managed to get through school without taking a foreign language class. While I think it would be cool, I don’t look at it as a regret that I only have a limited vocabulary in other languages. Another one was regretting missing the chance to see your favorite musicians. How? I see them everyday! My children, whether playing an instrument, signing or just being kids, are my favorite musicians!
The list did shed a light on things that we all know, but sometimes forget, such as forgoing sunscreen, staying in a bad relationship, working too much, and not realizing how beautiful you are. That is a tough one being that we live in such a “looks driven” society.
Missing the chance to ask your grandparents questions before they die. This, for me, actually applies to parents, or anyone for that matter. When it comes to death, we all seem to have some sort of regret because we let time beat us. We think that people will be around forever and we will “do it tomorrow”. Tomorrow is not guaranteed, so make the most of things TODAY. Ask those questions, which leads me into the next two: being a afraid to say “I love you” and not spending enough time with loved ones. If I were a betting man, those are probably the top two for many people.
Refusing to let friendships run their course. I personally have a hard time with this one. I hate seeing friendships come to an end, but there comes a time once in awhile where that may be better option, regardless of how much it hurts.
Worrying too much. Yea, that is a big one for me. I worry about everything. That is just me. I don’t necessarily regret it, but it would help my blood pressure if I didn’t worry so much!
There are many others: getting caught up in needless drama (I watch enough on TV), spending your youth self-absorbed (try making that point to a teenager), being scared to do things (nope, not gonna fly in a plane), not stopping to appreciate the moment (need to do that more), finishing what you start (this column is a good start) and not playing with your kids enough (so important!).
Of course, this is just a sampling of the list of “37”. If you want the whole list, shoot me an email and I will be happy to send you the full list!
On my way into work this past week, I was listening to a radio show. Their guest was a sleep study specialist who was discussing the time change and how it affects us. Obviously, the loss of sleep does affect us all in some way or another, but I had no idea to what extent. Aside from the obvious sleepiness we may feel, the specialist said that car accidents, strokes and heart attacks increase the first few days after a time a change. Don’t regret getting your sleep!
Oh, before I forget, one of the regrets was “never mastering one awesome party trick. If you have one, let me know! I hate being a wallflower at parties!
Submitted by Mark McGlothlen
