What would you do differently??

[Natjen24]

What would you do differently if you had to start your life over, knowing what you know now?

For me it would be simple. I would finish university, so I would be freed of those terrible evening classes. I would study to be a History teacher, instead of this terrible Marketing degree that I'm not intending on using.

As for my relation I wouldn't change a thing.

I would appreciate my family more. Try to be more understanding and less stubborn. I wasted many years with my mom, because we were both too stubborn to apoligise.

That would be about it, but hey I'm only 25. :cool2:

[Cowboy]

I would probably do everything just the same, but it would be nice to not make some of the mistakes that I did. Oh yeah, and I would never wear that USA sweat outfit back in 1981 to school. You see kids, back then, not all sweat pants had ties in them, some just had elastic waist bands. Therefore when you were in eighth grade and between classes in the West Hallway getting a drink of water and there were girls standing all around you getting a drink at the other water fountain and some guy standing behind you thinks it would be funny to drop your USA sweat pants and underwear down around your ankles, much to the surprise of everyone standing around you.......(deep breath).....yeah, rather than be happy when my Mom bought them for me, I would probably punch her in the mouth and burn them, had I only known!:cool2:

[bookworm101]

I would finish school before I did the sex, drugs, and rock and roll.

[Srbo]

I`ve posted this once already, but what the heck:

Gabriel Garcia Marquez


The Puppet


"If for a moment God would forget that I am a rag doll and give me a scrap of life, possibly I would not say everything that I think, but I would definitely think everything that I say.

I would value things not for how much they are worth but rather for what they mean.

I would sleep little, dream more. I know that for each minute that we close our eyes we lose sixty seconds of light.

I would walk when the others loiter; I would awaken when the others sleep.

I would listen when the others speak, and how I would enjoy a good chocolate ice cream.

If God would bestow on me a scrap of life, I would dress simply, I would throw myself flat under the sun, exposing not only my body but also my soul.

My God, if I had a heart, I would write my hatred on ice and wait for the sun to come out. With a dream of Van Gogh I would paint on the stars a poem by Benedetti, and a song by Serrat would be my serenade to the moon.

With my tears I would water the roses, to feel the pain of their thorns and the incarnated kiss of their petals...My God, if I only had a scrap of life...

I wouldn't let a single day go by without saying to people I love, that I love them.

I would convince each woman or man that they are my favourites and I would live in love with love.

I would prove to the men how mistaken they are in thinking that they no longer fall in love when they grow old--not knowing that they grow old when they stop falling in love. To a child I would give wings, but I would let him learn how to fly by himself. To the old I would teach that death comes not with old age but with forgetting. I have learned so much from you men....

I have learned that everybody wants to live at the top of the mountain without realizing that true happiness lies in the way we climb the slope.

I have learned that when a newborn first squeezes his father's finger in his tiny fist, he has caught him forever.

I have learned that a man only has the right to look down on another man when it is to help him to stand up. I have learned so many things from you, but in the end most of it will be no use because when they put me inside that suitcase, unfortunately I will be dying. "

[pandora]

Not a thing!!! Looking back even the worst of times had a purpose and got me where I am today......happy!!!!!!

[Roseasharn]

I would GO TO COLLEGE!
Yeah, that is essentially it.

[JohnDalglish]

Not a thing!!! Looking back even the worst of times had a purpose and got me where I am today......happy!!!!!!

Hi,

Me too, everything you've done. every mistake you've made (and I've made plenty) makes you who and what you are today and I'm quite happy with that.

Long days and pleasant nights

[Kim L.]

I would not marry my high school sweetheart, thus saving both of us from getting divorced during college.

[boogerb53]

Nothing. The sum of my life makes me who I am today.

[Bryan James]

My time machine is broken, does yours work?

"What Ifs" are extremely damaging, folks. "What Nexts" can be scary as ****all, but they empower.

BJS

[sherryw]

if i could do it differently knowing what i know now i would probably do some of the same things...marry the same man because i have incredibly awesome kids only i would end the marriage sooner saving all of us heartache. i'd have the same career because i really love my job. most importantly i would be a better person because of everything i've been through and everything i've learned. Fortunately i've already done most of the things listed above...maybe i'm ahead of the game and just did't know it!!!! as always.....

[Ubasti]

I wouldn't let my insecurities and shyness get in the way. Looking back, I can see that they kept me from doing a lot of things.

[mylife4usk]

I would NOT start SMOKING!

I would'nt drop out of college. :(

I'd TRY to be more patient with my child!!! ;)

And I would buy a treadmill instead of all those other machines! lol

[scratchesass]

Ida realized that dream of running off and livin in a cave somewhere.....

[MadamMack]

I would finish school before I did the sex, drugs, and rock and roll.

:rofl:

[Wendybird]

I wouldn't have got married at 19 to spite my parents. Big mistake. HUGE!
:oh:

[LadyPain]

I would have pursued my art much more diligently in the past several years. I would have told my father off at a much younger age and risked that broken jaw he promised me. I would have told my sister not to come to my wedding because the sour look on her face ruined all the pictures (thank goodness we did NOT hire a pro because that would have been a real waste of $$). I would have started to educate myself, even if only by correspondence.

I would have started learning more languages at a much younger age. I wouldn't have let my father bully me out of taking a second year of French in school.

I would have hit my father MUCH harder with my cast when I was 17. MUCH MUCH harder. Preferably in the 'nads. He deserved it.

I would have pressed charges against the man who is now my stalker, though thankfully I have not run into him much lately.

I would have never dated that Italian pretty-boy when I was living in Australia. He wasn't worth it.

I'd have wanted to be myself at a younger age instead of being who people wanted me to be.

Crap, I could keep on going on and on.

[BlueSmurf721]

I would have buckled down and finished college the first time...cause going back for the second time is a b*tch to fund.

Also, I would have broken up with an ex of mine much quicker than I did!

Oh, and there was this night...with tequila involved...yeah, wouldn't do that again, lol!

[Cerralin]

Not a thing!!! Looking back even the worst of times had a purpose and got me where I am today......happy!!!!!!

I totally agree Pandora, I wouldn't change a thing either as you say everything has a purpose and I would be who I am today =)

[Taz]

I have many things that I would like not to have had to go through, but would I change any of it? I'm not sure, to a certain degree they made me who I am, and whereas on one hand that's ok, on another hand it does hinder me in life. I have an amazing mother, and an amazing fiance who stands by me despite my erratic mood swings and such, and if changing anything about my life would mean that those two people would not be in my life, then I couldn't possibly change a thing. I suppose my experiences allow me to be a lot more empathetic than most, to me a person in a business suit is no better than the homeless person in the street simply asking for a cup of tea on a cold night. There are a lot of things I don't like about my life, but ultimately I consider myself a good person, I give everything I have to those I love, and what I can to people who need help. There is one thing I would change though, about 7 years ago, my grandfather sent me an email (I immigrated to the UK from South Africa and he was still there), I kept meaning to respond to the email, weeks went by, then one day I received a phone call that he had been in an accident and died, if I could change anything I would respond to that email, it's hard to explain, but it would have been important to him, and 7 years on, I can't think of that email without regret.

[arista]

I would have made better decisions regarding friends in high school. I realize looking back now, that I was pretty superficial back in the day.

[jamconsulting]

I don't know if it would be wise to do things as I had planned when I was younger. As things worked out I joined the Navy and by chance avoided the draft. The army would have sent me to Nam in time for the fall of Saigon. I would not be writing this now! If I had not studied photography I would not have lived in California. If I had finished college the first time - well as it turns out I finished many years later with lots of night school - Magna Cum Laude. A lot has taken place between high school and now - My only regret is working for a company that will soon fail due to management issues. I hate looking for work after most of the jobs are filled.

[Theregulator]

Next time I dress like a hooker and go to a bar to pick up 'a strange man' (hubby) I will go somewhere that the bar staff don't know us. Probably try and avoid our local altogether.

[PatInTheHat]

Gee whiz, what if I had the opportunity to turn left, right, gone straight or maybe even went backwards, instead of heading in the various poorly mapped directions, that led to so many, shall we say subpar destinations, one might not ordinarily find on the typical "Successful Life Tour Map"?

I could have been a contender I tell ya!

Hmmm, or maybe instead, I could have been hit by a busload of nuns, heading to a casino courtesy of the Pope, at the very moment I hit the Life Shall Now Always Be So Mucho Grande' lottery.
(if I've learned one true thing in life it is this (at this particular moment anyway, for the sake of arguement you understand), it's never a good idea to get between the good sisters and the full comp buffet...even hypothetical ones...especially on All-You-Can-Eat Seafood Friday w/Genuine King Crab Legs night:oh:)

But what the hell, why not:eyebrow:?
I'm always up for the road not taken (but I do so hate doin' any backtrackin'), if nothin' else, you'll usually end up with a shiney oil pan out of the deal!
Though I doubt the ultimate outcome would be much different in the end, regardless of things you think you know now, and maybe believing ignorance is isn't really bliss in the lifes little mysteries category (tell me that if you ever get indicted...and besides, how would one know:oo:?).

Here one cosmically inconsequential minute, gone the sands of time next...there's something beautifully humbling in that, though beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and it's hard to be very humble, when hungry critters look upon you as a minor god, just 'cause of them spectacular opposible thumbs most of us get as standard operating equipment:laugh:.

Any regret is for suckers I feel, live life, live well, live now and enjoy all incoming magic moments...they're the only ones we get!
Whhhoooosshhhh...see, there went another one...was that my bus...dammit, and I could have had a chicken wing:glare:.

[brandt813]

I wouldn't let my insecurities and shyness get in the way. Looking back, I can see that they kept me from doing a lot of things.

Oh ditto, ditto, ditto!!!! My insecurities and low self-esteem/image made me do things I regret, and made me omit things from my life that I really wish I had done!!!

[JohnDalglish]

Any regret is for suckers I feel, live life, live well, live now and enjoy all incoming magic moments...they're the only ones we get!


Hi,

Yes indeed, Pat, I'm very interested in the future.

It's where I intend to spend the rest of my life.

Long days and pleasant nights

[JohnDalglish]

Hi,

Just listening to a song 'It's All Good', from Bob Dylan's new album, 'Together Through Life', and I quote -

'I wouldn't change a thing even if I could
You know what they say, they say it's all good'.

Aye.

Long days and pleasant nights

[Autumnlyn]

Honestly...I would have been a bigger slut! Back in my youth I thought that sex 'meant something' or 'saving myself'. Damn, I wasted many, many years under that misconception.

[catnoel]

I have in my darkest hours made that wish. If only I could start over............. Granted I have made many mistakes, pretty much gone through the seven deadly sins, and have not always been a very nice person. Sometimes I think I may have reservations in Hell for some of the crap I have done. However, would I still be the same person I am today?? Not that I am perfect, but I have grown alot from my experiences and now try to be a good person. I now think these experiences were necessary to bring me to where I am today. I will go through more because I still have alot to learn and more growing to do. :devil:

[smjohn]

Not a thing!!! Looking back even the worst of times had a purpose and got me where I am today......happy!!!!!!

I had my answer all ready to go until I saw this post, and you are absolutely right. While my childhood left very little to be desired since birth, I am happy to be the person that I am today and would not be without the experiences I've had. Thank you for putting things into perspective for me, Pandora:love:

[brandt813]

Of course, this is such a conflicted question. I said below that I would have simply done more by trying to get out of my self-esteem issues, but at the same time--I have two WONDERFUL children, an AWESOME bride of 15 years. If changing my past would change that part of my present--I'M NOT INTERESTED!!!

[smooth operator]

I have answered this question in one of the social groups, and my answer is the same here. Although I realize that all I have been through in my life has helped to make me who I am now, it was still pure hell. I don't have a time machine and "what if" is not any more damaging that "what was" or "what is yet to be." My answer is still the same - I would leave home as soon as I was able to walk and never look back. As much as I love certain of my family members, what the rest of them did to me outweighs that love. I would have been better off with a chance at fulfilling my potential.

[Natjen24]

After reading all your comments, I feel like changing something can change everything. A butterfly effect. I have a good life, I have someone in my life I love very much and I am grateful he loves me back even more. He understands me completely and takes me as I am, and that is saying a lot.
If even the smallest change could deny me all this, than to h*ll with college, to h*ll with being a history teacher. I'll just be happy being us and see what more comes on my way. Maybe I can be that history teacher to my own kids someday. :smile2:

[marew1]

The only things I would do differently is get a Masters Degree in Educational Administration which may have gotten me a vice principal's position. The other was never to have smoked cigarettes.

[Daisygirl]

I wouldn't change one thing. Every experience has made me who I am today, and I like what I see in the mirror :cool2:

[Charms7]

I just wish I'd chosen rich parents with lots of silver spoons to place in my mouth (and a trust fund or two) but I guess somehow I manage to seize the day without all that extra cash cluttering up my bank account.

[ally88]

I wouldn't do anything differently. I am perfectly happy with the person I am and the life I lead. Whenever I come up against something which doesn't make me happy, I change it there and then...life is too short to have regrets:smile2:.

[TowerGirl]

I like who I have become. I became who I am today through the hardships of yesterday.

With that said: the only thing I would change is that I would have taken microbiology in school and gone on to get a degree! I LOVE germs, I am obsessed with them. But I can't get the cool jobs because I don't have a degree.... (so I just make sanwiches instead....that's fun too) :smile2:

[Srbo]

On second thought, I just remembered the movie " Butterfly Effect " where they tried to fix things that went wrong in the past.
And it only got worse than it already was.

So, no, don`t change anything.

[Walter Wego]

In quantum physics,according to my near idiot level understanding of it,a particle can or must exist in multiple places at the same time.This hints at the existence of a multiverse.If one extrapolates from the small particle ,to an atom ,molecule ,chemical chain,cell structure up to a human being this suggests that decisions we make can create alternate futures for ourselves.This is a rational justification to the otherwise inane idea of the power of positive thinking.The brain therefore is a generator of alternative universes.But when can the mind not cause this generation.Perhaps this is what is achieved when one meditates in whatever religious sect.Or perhaps I should not drink coffee this late at night.

[^Tommyknocker^]

Too many things to write them all down, but afterall Im happy with my life.

When you are 20 you dont wanne do anything differently, when you are 30 you start thinking you better had done things differently and when you are 40you are sure of it :glare:
But its not because its different its better, sometimes its even worse :biggrin2:

[mojomofo]

I wouldn't have worried so much about what other people thought of me. I prevented myself from doing things I wanted to do, and I want to go back and smack myself.

I would have went to college instead of moving out so I could play grown-up.

I would have bought a house that is NOT 60 years old and falling apart.

I would NOT have shared a fifth of whiskey with a friend on a hot day in a house with no air conditioning.

I wouldn't have started smoking again after the last baby.

I would have listened to my mom, and not been so eager to shave my legs. They weren't that hairy, I just wanted to be cool.

I would have gotten up from my table in Kindergarten and went to the bathroom, despite the teacher telling me no.

I would have taken my dog to the vet much sooner.

[Todash]

While I do like myself, I'd be lying if I said I'd not want to change anything about me. And I've certainly made decisions I'd not make again. Whether you call it karma or something else, I think overall doing the right thing produces the best results, so yes, there are some things I'd change if I could, and they mostly have to do with times when I acted out of fear rather than from love.

1. I would have stuck up for my little brother when we were kids and his "friend" pushed him off his bike, rather than just helping him afterward.
2. I'd have visited my father before he died, long before, because we might have been able to have a relationship. At least I would have known I'd done the right thing.
3. I would have ratted out a friend's boyfriend for making a pass at me when I was 17.

I will say, however, that at least I have learned a few things along the way: to stand up for the unjustly maligned and downtrodden, to cherish the connections I do have, to forgive with my actions and not just my thoughts, to tell the hard truths. In lieu of actually going back and changing the past, that's the best we can do.