Life is too short to live in the moments of regret. When we are stuck in regret we halt our progress toward becoming who we need to be. Stop being trapped in the past and begin to live for today. ~Joey Parker
There are moments when most of us will live in the past for a short time and experience regret of some kind. Few of us manage to escape this very human response to certain situations we find ourselves in.
Does the quote bring something to mind immediately for you? It may be something very simple that you regretted for only a few moments; though for some regret can become quite an unbearable burden if we feel we’ve made a big mistake or chosen the wrong path or reaction to something that would have made our lives quite different.
Living in regret can lead to huge lifestyle changes that might influence our path for many years. It can also lead to anxiety and depression as we dwell in the well that regret creates within us.
Regret can be prevented from having a massively negative impact if we take time to know ourselves, to think through our decisions, exploring possible outcomes and assessing whether any potential negative effects are worth living with if they occur.
Feeling in control of our decisions or acknowledging our part in making them can really make a difference to the level of regret that we may feel if things don’t turn out the way we hoped.
That’s what Joey Parker means by not getting stuck in the past. Regret is a shadow of the past that we sometimes cling to if we are unable to let go of the bad decisions or negative situations that we have found ourselves in whether through choice or not.
So I pray that you will be able to let go of the things that have gone before, embrace the present and move forward in hope this year.
On the fourth Monday of each month from 12 til 1pm we have a mindful activity session in the dining room of the EngineRooms covid rules permitting. You are very welcome to join us for a chat or simply to try out one of the craft activities for a bit of creative relaxation, or a few mindful moments. If you don’t manage to catch up with a chaplain on site, as always you can contact us via email on info@mitechaplaincy.com where you can request a call-back, or you are very welcome to call me directly on my mobile: 07526 378529 either to chat or to arrange a time to meet with one of the chaplains.
We also have a range of resources on our web-site including some that are more specific to the Covid-19 outbreak and some that help in dealing with stress: https://mite.org.uk
If you prefer you can easily keep in touch with us on social media: Facebook: @mitechaplaincy Twitter: @mitesthwarr
Photo by Richard Brutyo on Unsplash