I was preparing a response to someone's post on the Daily Strength forum. They have issues with their past mistakes, looking for the ways to forgive themselves somehow. Looking back at my own life I am noticing how I do not have regrets about my choices. You cannot imagine how good does that feels! I am not saying that I consider all I ever did in life was the right thing to do. Far from it. But the thing is...I can only see it as "mistake" from a distance of time and space. In the moment of when I was making these choices they seemed simply the best ones I had. It is only when we moved away from the moment, we can see it in different perspective. Notice something more then there is to it, read a lesson encrypted into it.
Much the same as a stereogram. I am amazed at the coincidence of my mind turned to this particular issue and the timing of me accidentally stumbled upon this site. It is almost spooky how this worked - the moment I needed this depth of understanding, it was presented to me in its best. The deeper layer of reality, invisible to the first glance, yet you can notice it by changing your perspective. I'm totally enchanted by the Ennegram in particular. Even if the meaning explained on the pages, is completely fabricated, the picture itself is not a fake. It does take you in and once you've seen the image, you can no longer see it any other way. It is as if your inner sight has opened...your In Sight.
So back to regrets. The key to forgiveness of your self is in understanding that when you did what you've done, it was the best you could do at that moment. When we step back and see it as a mistake that means we learn a lesson. Who in their right mind would want to make another mistake after that. "If you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you've always got" [a quote by Susan Jeffries]
I don't have regrets. Every time when I think of the past and wish I could've done it different, I find my peace in knowing that next time around - I will. And isn't it qualified as the lesson learned