Friday, July 20, 2012

I Wish I Had Known...



I  wish...

  1. I wish I had known that you can't make other people happy.
  2. I wish I had known that it was okay to go to bed when I was tired.
  3. I wish I had known that it was not weak to ask for help.
  4. I wish I had known to stop and play with the kids in the rain and not worry about the extra load of laundry it would cause.
  5. I wish I had known to give more hugs and kisses.
  6. I wish I had known when to bite my tongue...and when to speak up.
  7. I wish I had known when to walk away.
  8. I wish I had known how to hold on to my dreams instead of setting them aside until "a more convenient time."
  9. I wish I had stopped what I was doing and listened more.
  10. I wish I had taken better care of myself...and the people and things that I care about.
  11. I wish I had tucked away more money, and ideas, and surprises, and memories.
  12. I wish I had worried less about what people thought.
  13. I wish I had worried less about failing.
  14. I wish I had laughed more, and smiled more, and done more cartwheels on the lawn.
  15. I wish I had sang more without being ashamed of my woefully out-of-tune voice.
  16. I wish I had not been my own stumbling block.
  17. I wish I had called my parents more.
  18. I wish I had insisted on more family meals.
  19. I wish I had told more stories.
  20. I wish I had set aside my fears.
Now that I am forty, I know better.  There is so much  more that I know now that I never understood...could never understand...at twenty or thirty. 

Now it is time to make some changes.

Look out world!

12 comments:

  1. Happy birthday! I wish I had known it was okay to have a messy house if it meant having a happy family. I learned that one long before 40 though! :)

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    1. See, you are ahead of the curve! :) (And thank you!)

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  2. This is fantastic. I really needed this today.

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    1. Thank you!

      Maybe a cartwheel on the lawn would help? If not, at least you remember not to take things too seriously when you are spinning across the grass the world turns into a beautiful blur...

      I hope your day gets better. ((hugs))

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  3. Maybe I'll figure some of this out by the time I'm forty--in 5 months! :)

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  4. Happy Birthday!! Joining your club soon...:-)
    I agree, these are things (esp. #8 and #17) we wish we would have known, but there is no way we actually could have. Let's hope we set the wishing aside now at 40 and can actually act on what we have learned.

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  5. I am slowly learning some of these things--and it was very encouraging to read this. Happy birthday!

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  6. Happy birthday! I think it's great to know even a fraction of these by age 40. (I'm joining the club soon too.)

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  7. This is beautiful! I hope you had a wonderful birthday, and that the year ahead brings you joy, success, and a closeness to God (if I may say so?). I hope you experience blessings in the little ways, as well as in the big things, and I really appreciate this little list of advice!

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  8. Ah, from your lips to God's ears! Thank you very much for the sweet words and wishes. I am so glad that you are here with me on this journey!

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  9. That's a deep list. Seriously. Some soul searching is happening on this end. Happy Birthday, T.Z. :)

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  10. I think agree with every single one.

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