One Mom's Journey

When I was in my early twenties, I dated men that were older, one that was almost 10 years older, and I will never forget when we broke up he said "you are still so young, you will not believe what you will learn and how much you will mature over the next few years."  At the time, I thought I knew everything, I thought I was so well rounded and educated and smart, I thought I could replace life learning's with book knowledge. Boy was I wrong.  I knew nothing of emotional control, nothing of how the "real world" worked, nothing of "how to respect people" nothing of "true love".

Without further ado, here are the top ten things I would have done differently if I knew then what I know now:

1. Been nicer to kids in elementary school - respected and treated everyone equally instead of judging and trying to be better than everyone else.
2. Paid more attention to Science - it is fascinating and blows my mind.  Back then, I never questioned anything, now I question and inquire about everything.
3. Paid more attention to music - music is the key to the soul.
4. Not fought as much with my brothers, I should have let things go, but I suppose a lot of sibling rivalry is very primal and natural, so I won't be too hard on myself.
5. Not fought as much with my mom - I didn't think she had my best interests at heart, but being a mom myself, I see clearly now.
6. Yelled less and listened more - I see this with my eldest daughter, before even hearing the answer she is jumping to conclusions and not listening and getting upset - she is so me...
7. Stopped rushing and started enjoying - I rarely stopped to smell the roses.  I also didn't learn that until I had children, they opened my eyes to this.
8. Travelled more and worried less.
9. Followed my passions instead of the dollar signs
10. Been less lazy when it came to finishing something I started.

We could all try and do these things, because really, life goes fast!  Next thing you know, you are looking back with regrets.  What will I do with this post?  First, I will try and apply all of these things as an adult - afterall, it is never too late!  Second, I will show it to my kids, let them decide whether or not they want to try and follow any of this guidance - since I can clearly not go back in time, I may as well try and guide my children to learn from my mistakes and to not have the same regrets.