It’s easy to argue with yourself or handicap yourself with regret over what went differently in life than planned. For some reason, yesterday, I recalled that the plan for my life had gone off the rails in a less-than-endearing fashion numerous times. Jobs were terminated when funding ran out or when there was a reduction in force thanks to realignments in government programs ( thanks so much, Bill Clinton!). After each upset, you regretted the loss but put things back to the right – as closely as you could.
Like many repairs done hopscotch, some repairs do not align perfectly. But you proceed as close to course as you can – what else will you do- sit down and have a good cry? OK, so a few times after everyone else went to bed, yes, I did have a good cry.
Life can be like a mobile. You set it up, and it moves in interesting paths. But even if you knock it akilter, it gradually rights itself and resumes its way. You can destroy the perfect balance of the mobile by removing a piece, shortening a wire, or otherwise changing the balance of the parts. That, too, is like life.
What happens afterward depends on you.
So yes, I am curious about what might have happened if I realized previous paths. As I drifted off to sleep, I recalled that one of my first significant wishes for my life was that I didn’t want to be bored with it or for it to be tedious.
As the old saying goes, be careful of what you wish for; you might get it.
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Oh I had the same wish for life – I guess we asked for it, lol.
Funny. We asked for a lot of other things, but this was what we got.
Ha ha ha ha…Good one
This was a great way of responding and I found your answer very on point… thank you so much for all you share and for all the encouragement that you have offered me over this last year… this lobby would not be nearly as lovely without you in it Carver… hugs brother
The experience I had a few weeks ago that put an alternative life right in front of me ALSO showed me that I would have ended up in the same place with that life as with the one I have lived. Fate has some silly twists and teaching moments as it winks at you.
True. One of my primary interests in the seventies was to stay in Academia. Looking at the lives of some of my peers who made that work, but without tenure, I’m kind of glad that did not work out.
I never got tenure. I don’t know what that means other than I never got tenure 🤣 but I mostly had a good time and that’s I think as good as it gets!
I DID enjoy my time teaching as a adjunct. I had nursing students, and they were an intersting bunch to teach. With my background I think I was better qualified than many others to teach them the subject, I did a lot of tailoring to fit nursing situations.
And you’re right having a good time is important!