I was listening to the radio this morning and the presenter was happily chatting away. He talked about how things had changed for him. This got me thinking about how much it has for me. Changed beyond recognition.
Let’s go back 20 years
- Just starting a life changing relationship
- Still playing football and cricket,
- Regular mountaineering and climbing,
- Drinking alcohol a bit too much,
- My social life often centred around the pub,
- I would get edgy if I wasn’t meeting up regularly with friends,
- Using alcohol to overcome social anxieties,
- Work was super busy with so many meetings. So many people to deal with,
- Spending little time at home (time at home was seen as a bit of a waste)
- Holidays,
- Frequent family meetings revolving around mum,
- Concerts, football matches, the Theatre and the Cinema,
- Trying to avoid being by myself and if I was I would try to drown out the silence with my MP3 player,
- Fuelled on caffeine.
Now contrast that with this week….
- Single parenting,
- Aspergers,
- Revisiting wonderful memories,
- Emailing one or two friends,
- Blogging,
- No work,
- Housebound with one trip beyond the gates to the Vets,
- Tea total, no caffeine,
- Lots of silence,
- No meet-ups,
- No prospect of holidays, trips out, concerts,
- Reading,
- Time spent talking with Hawklad,
- Only one other physical conversation (briefly with the Vet),
- Homeschooling,
- Working out in the garden,
- Trying to practice mindfulness.
Life definitely has changed. It always does eventually. Some things for the worse. Some things for the better. Some things I would change back. But many things I cherish. On balance I definitely wouldn’t go back.
A Dad trying to cope with the loss of his Partner and becoming a single parent. 
You’re getting the opportunity to REALLY know yourself and Hawklad. I definitely wouldn’t go back to 20 years ago. Ugh!
Hopefully we are always growing, always improving. Even horrible things can have a Golden nugget inside. We just have to find it!
💌💌💌
LikeLiked by 2 people
Got to keep looking xxx
LikeLiked by 1 person
Looking back, there is not much to change is there? What would you undo, or alter in trying to keep in a place that was the. way it was?
I find myself revisiting my life in Austria on my blog and wondering who I would have been if I had stayed there, and the answer is always “not the person you are now.”
The intersection between nostalgia and regret is sometimes a to be mindful of, and with Covid a lot of the patterns we lived have been disrupted. I wonder if that’s a bad thing or just the fear of change that we take umbrage to (beyond the health consequences)?
LikeLiked by 2 people
I’m not sure I would undo stuff. It’s all contributed to who I am.
LikeLike
You always know how to put a positive spin on things. Change can be hard, but like you said there are things that have been very rewarding too and yes, I agree I wouldn’t want to go back to 20 years ago, even with the uncertainty that Covid brings now!
LikeLiked by 2 people
You have so much now. x
LikeLike
Odd question inspired my comment convo on another post… did your dog have a checkup or did you let him go? I thought it was a checkup but am no longer sure.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Annual injection and to check out a recurring sneeze.
LikeLike
Whewww!!! I was worried.
LikeLike
Me 20yrs vs now: Living in apt in a fantastic, highly social, part of town. Thought I never own a home. 2 pet cats instead of 4 + strays/ferals. Fantastic neighbors. Small live bands at nearby bar provided a “background score” to my life (I miss that soooo much). 2 teeny blocks from the beach. Knees worked. HORRIBLE work commute (70 miles, one way). Steady income.
LikeLiked by 1 person
It’s just a road to how we arrive at our destination
LikeLike
Well said!
LikeLike
Most of us would not choose to go back even if we could.
LikeLiked by 2 people
I think your right.
LikeLiked by 1 person
👍
LikeLiked by 1 person
😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
I certainly would not go back to 20 years ago.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Many wouldn’t
LikeLiked by 1 person
Me neither!
LikeLiked by 1 person
🙏
LikeLiked by 1 person
It’s an ever moving river and one thing you can be assured of, hard to remember when you are caught in it, it will change again. When you think about it we lead a lot of lives.
LikeLiked by 1 person
We so do. The river analogy is so true.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I guess it is. We all do live many lives when you look over it all, starting with your parents. That doesn’t even begin to cover how diff the world is now from then, never mind your life with them.
LikeLiked by 1 person
So many lives. Hopefully most of them bring smiles.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I always feel the same about going back – we have to deal with what is to come
LikeLiked by 1 person
We so do
LikeLiked by 1 person
I am an introvert, but I’ve been finding this year, when I can talk. I can’t stop, lol
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m the same. X
LikeLiked by 1 person
It’s a weird year, lol
LikeLiked by 1 person
It really is xxx
LikeLiked by 1 person
I marvel too at how much has changed in the past 20 years. Crazy!
LikeLiked by 1 person
It so is. I remember running with a CD Walkman. What a nightmare
LikeLiked by 1 person
No, I would not go back either. There’s always the chance you could make a bigger mess! (Me at least.)
LikeLiked by 1 person
Many wont
LikeLike
Love this . I can see this about you. I found many similarities of your past with me. And now. Life and all of us have changed.,.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’d sometimes like to go back and experience my boys as little ones again. I wonder if, in ten years’ time, we’ll sit and think, goodness how things have changed … and for the better!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I think we would all like to go back to that age again. xx
LikeLiked by 1 person
Definitely wouldn’t go back to who I was 20 years ago, as life is such a learning process. Would I go back 20 years knowing what I know now? That one is interesting to think about…💕
LikeLiked by 1 person
I would like to pop back but definitely not stay.❤️
LikeLiked by 1 person