Day 1265

The face of regret…Sammy wears it well! This boy has “Mommyitis” beyond measure. Upon returning from a trip to the basement (with a door between us), I was met by a shredded Christmas ornament and this face. We had a discussion, where I held the remnants of the decoration, and Sammy looked on with regret and confusion. He clearly didn’t understand his faux pas, but knew I was disappointed. After a firm, “Sammy, why did you chew this?”, his face melted my heart (and resolve) and I hugged him while requesting that he think twice next time. Sweet boy.

Regret is one of those feelings that nobody likes. It typically relates to a poor choice on some level and often includes others. In my life, my regrets are few, but those that linger hold a place in my heart. Every single one of them is connected to my words or actions possibly hurting someone.

Through the years, I have rectified almost every one of those life errors. A simple apology typically suffices, but a few took a bit more. In some cases, as I groveled and searched for the right words, the recipient had no recollection of the event my heart regretted for years!

Lessons learned from regret…

*Try to avoid words and actions that are unkind.

*If regret fills your heart, do something about it!

*Learn from actions that lead to regret and try not to repeat them.

*Realize that the regret you feel might be based on nothing!

As for Sammy… in my eyes, he can do no wrong!