Hindsight

I’ve never really had any regrets in life. Yes, there are things I wished I would have/should have/could have done but I try not to label them as regrets. The word/term I use is hindsight. Like regret, but not as harsh. More wishful thinking than beating myself up.

So here’s my list of things I wished I would have done, in hindsight of course.

• Writing

I’ve had so many different opportunities to write in my life. And there has been quite a few of them that I’ve taken and they are a part of my life I cherish and remember. But in hindsight, I would have not stopped towards the end of 1995. I wished I would have kept up with the freelance work I was doing and venturing into my fictional works.

• Filming and movie making

As evidenced on this site by those who know of my videos I love to do, I’ve not done too many of them in 2010 and 2011. In hindsight, I should not have let the pressures of my day job and many, many other distractions I get multiple times a day, take me away from filming, editing and putting together even the silliest of videos.

• Giving my power away

A friend told me about 11 years ago that every time you let someone else control your life, you are giving your power away. A great piece of advice on how to live your life, which I have mostly ignored. Very similar to how I let other things distract me on a constant basis. But more along the lines of always doing what others ask of me and me almost always doing them. I don’t mind helping people, but I admit to being too nice and letting other take advantage of my time. In hindsight, I wished I had learned to politely say “NO” more often and kept my power over my life in many areas.

• Spent more time with my daughter

I do spend a good amount of time with my daughter, but there was a time during my divorce that I wished I would have spent more time with her. The many times I moved about and some of the darker times I experienced due to the lack of money and too many different substances I partook of. For the years of 2002 to 2006, I felt there wasn’t enough time I spent with her, which could have helped both of us. We have a good relationship now, but in hindsight, I think it could have been better.

• Had more video footage of my mom

Since the late 1980’s, I’ve had a video camera. And I’ve taken a ton of footage since then. But from what I remember, I don’t think I have a lot of footage of my mom. Now that she’s been gone for over 5 years, in hindsight, I wish I had more video footage of her. I look at the many photos I have and wish they could speak and move about.

• Exercising/Working out

Back in 2000, I joined Bally’s and worked out a lot. And up until about 2009, I found ways to stay active. My growing double chin and belly are two things I look at multiple times a day and I wish they would disappear. In hindsight, I should have continued working out and staying active. Especially since my yearly physical where my doctor told me that my blood sugar was a quite a bit higher than it should be. Now I add metFormin to my 2 pills I take daily for the next 3 months. I am using a treadmill several times a week, which is a good start. Maybe posting mostly naked pictures of me again will add to the motivation.

I may think of more, but those are the ones that I think of each and every day of my life. Not so much as a burden, but things that I really wished I had done that I want to be doing now or have memories of having done.

What things do you wish you had done, in hindsight?