I remember browsing Reddit when a question grabbed me.
To any health-workers caring for the dying… What are their greatest regrets?”
I had to take a look. I assumed a trove of profound and life-changing responses.
I was wrong.
They weren’t exciting, interesting, or even a surprise. You could guess the answers yourself. But that’s the thing about life; there aren’t any amazing or profound answers. We don’t need to embark on a Hollywood journey to discover life’s truths. Deep down, we already know what we should do.
If we all know what we should do, why do we keep dying with the same regrets? Why don’t we take action? The problem is, what we should do is boring; it’s vanilla. If we want to lose weight, we need to stop eating food that looks unhealthy and exercise more. Instead, we fuss with the details and overcomplicate the process to skirt around the hard work.
Life is no different. We get swept up in the bustle of our day and shelve good intentions for tomorrow, and when tomorrow comes, we do it all again. We keep telling ourselves there’s time until one day we’re on our deathbed telling the nurse…
“I wish I had forgiven the people I loved in my life.”
“I wish I had taken better care of my body.”
“I wish I had spent more time with family. I wish I had been there for them.”
Don’t let these become your regrets.
Published in Philosophy, Psychology, Relationships, Self ImprovementThe best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago. The second best time is now.
Chinese Proverb
