Living for a Second Time

For this week’s post I’m supposed to follow this advice:

Viktor_Frankl_quote3

Tackling the second part first: of course I’ve acted wrongly the first time. “…as though…” my ass.

But, getting to the first part: I’ve heard differing variations on this:

  • If you had to live your life over again, what would you do differently?
  • If I knew then what I know now…
  • Hindsight makes fools of us all.

The positives I gained from focusing on living for a second time were at first pretty insightful:

If I get a fresh start, right off I’m gonna forget all about blowing that first chance—not focus on all my blunders, as it would lead me to continue to go around weighed down with a sack full of guilt and regret—all over again!

Along with losing the baggage is to grasp that great cliché about not beating oneself up for mistakes—big and small.

Well then, if I can rid myself of all that baggage, why not do it while I’m living in this first chance life? (Cuz I realize that pretending I’m living a second life is gonna make me a little nuts.)

One thing I approached differently: how to handle life’s challenges, or even my everyday ‘to do’ list. For example, yesterday I went on a 3 mile walk, cleaned the inside of my car (sort of), and did some gardening.

I identified my tendency to procrastinate, and got right into the first (free) online lesson I signed up for on how to sell my art more efficiently.

That was yesterday. This is today:

I didn’t even make a ‘to do’ list, and have let my mind lose its focus on being productive and healthy. My second chance turned into ‘fat chance’. However, I did remember the adage about not beating myself up. Half of my day was spent on trivial pursuits. But I did persuade myself to do some filing, continued working on an art project, and tidied up some correspondence.

I think that the best advice for me would be to view each new day separately—a freshly wrapped present, with its own beginnings, second chances, highs and lows. And leave the bloody past way in the back of my behind.

[Img.Src: Viktor Frankl portrait]

Enter your email address:

Delivered by FeedBurner