I regret not realizing this sooner

One of the most difficult emotions for most people to get over is regret. I found myself wading through a mental pool of reflection today. Though I had some smile filled moments, I also had a few pauses for regret. I regretted the times I was naive in the face of blatantly obvious circumstances. I regretted coming into contact with some people and letting go of others. I regretted missed opportunities and opportunities I wished I had missed.

Amidst my melancholy memorial session, I realized I was seeing things all wrong. Regret is a dangerous emotion that should not be embraced but should be studied and understood.

As a child, when learning to walk we all stumbled and fell a few times, but it was that falling that taught us we were doing it the wrong way. My regrets are not regrets, they are lessons I had to learn. I read somewhere that we don't remember what we are taught, we remember what we learn. If this is true then it would explain why it is that no matter how many times we are warned, we still make mistakes then wish we had listened.

The truth is that I needed to be naive so I would know the value of trusting my own instincts; I needed to encounter undesirable people so I would be able to properly judge character. I needed to lose a few meaningful persons so I could learn to appreciate the ones that are still a part of my life. I needed to miss opportunities so I would take advantage of the others to come.

So though I regret knowing that there are more regrets to come, I do know that I will embrace every lesson it brings my way.