[Image credit: David Castillo Dominici]

While writing a letter to a friend, I mentioned my fall and subsequent ankle sprain.  If only I would have kept my normal routine and gone to the gym in the morning, I wrote, then I wouldn’t have run after work and fallen off the curb.  Sometimes those if only, thens haunt me.  If only I’d get more sleep or make healthier food selections, then I’d be less fatigued.  If only I spent more time writing, then I’d be happier/fulfilled/more successful.  If only I lived closer to my loved ones, then the goodbyes would be easier because the time between visits would be shorter.  Although if only, thens are statements following a choice and its consequences, I wonder if the outcome might change if posed before, rather than after a decision.  For example, if only I possessed enough courage, then I would fill in the blank.  And once I identified with this 20-20 vision, maybe the if only, thens would become a means to an end rather than the hindsight which often follows.  In other words, there are no do overs, so getting it right the first time can save a lot of (heart)aches and pains in the long run.

Are you an if only, then kind of person, or do you live your life without looking back?