Regrets of the Dying

Don't be put off by the title of this post! .....Instead follow this link to the blog post with the same title, that was written by Bronnie Ware. A modern day philanthropist, Bronnie Ware has, through her life experience of working with patients in palliative care, written a summary of 5 key regrets which perfectly describe how we should all focus a little more on the way we spend our lives day to day.

As I read it I thought about the aspects of my own life that I should change, and it was after a recent discussion with a friend about that very word - 'should' - that I realised that change won't happen unless I change my own language, the way I talk to myself and thus change my approach to life. The 5 Regrets of the Dying start each sentence with the words 'I wish..' because it's really too late for them to re-live their life. Their regrets have nothing to do with money, career or material wealth, which should be obvious to us all really, because when we leave, the only thing that matters about what we leave behind are the memories. There are no amount of material possessions that can replace the feeling of having people in your life.

If you're fortunate enough to have good health, read and take note of what it means to be alive and well by the people who are not as fortunate as you are. I hope that reading The Regrets of the Dying blog will stop you in your tracks if only for a moment and get you to think - it certainly stopped me! Whatever our regrets of our past are, let's not make them regrets in our future.