Living without regret.

Regret.

It is such a complicated thing. I do not have many “mantras” in my life, but if I were to consider anything as such it would be the thought to not regret anything. I am not talking about regretting that ice cream I just ate. (However, can you ever truly regret eating ice cream?) I am talking about the decisions I make on a regular basis that could potentially alter my life in a drastic or not-so-drastic way.

Everything happens for a reason; therefore, why should time be wasted regretting something that serves a purpose. I make a lot of mistakes. I mean a LOT. Mistakes are unavoidable as we are human, but some times I feel like I make life harder on myself and make more mistakes then necessary. However, I always end up learning from my mistakes; they always serve a purpose.

Some times it is more difficult than other times to remember that everything serves a purpose. I catch myself getting wrapped up in thoughts of, “what if I had done this instead” or “If I had not done that, would this still be happening to me?” Lately, I have been thinking about the choices I made way back in middle school and in to high school. I made many good decisions and I made many more bad decisions. What if I had done differently? Would my life now be different? The mind set that I developed and focused on back then was supposed to help me now. Is it? What if I had been more relaxed and not so focused? Would I be living a different life now? Would it be a better life? Or worse?

All of the what ifs just make my head spin and end up causing me to sink in to a state of melancholy. There is no point in focusing on the ‘what ifs’ because there is no way to go back and change things. I made the decisions that I made and I have lived the way I have lived. All that I can do is learn from my past and push forward. I can’t change the past, but I sure can change the future.

I am learning to hold my head up high. I am learning that I cannot put old dreams to the side and forget them. I am learning that it is never too late to start now. I am learning to slow down and enjoy the present. I am learning that I still have an entire life time ahead of me. I am already twenty, yet I am only twenty. I have twenty years behind me, but I could potentially have seventy more before me. I want to live a life that I can look back on and be proud of. I want to serve Christ and live my life in a way that brings Him glory. I want to live life to the fullest.

It is so easy to step in to a comfortable life, but I am not designed for “comfortable.” I am here to step out blindly and test the waters. I am not designed for “safe.” I am here to over come my fears and pursue my passions no matter what it takes to reach them.
These are my mantras.