Have you ever wondered where life would have taken you...?

Question

had you chosen the other path to the one you are traveling down now, in this journey across life?

Do you wonder if you have made the best decisions for yourself at the many crossroads encountered throughout your life?

Or are you happy with your journey so far?

In every aspects of our lives; love, friends, relationships, beliefs or careers, we all come to various points where we must choose. How do you deliberate on your choices?

Care to share?

Size 2, thank you, you are kind.

Jach, that was beautiful. I thank you from the deepest corner of my heart

(((Valac Gypsy))) I agree, what we have left behind at that crossroad long ago should have the least bearing whatsoever if we were make a good headway into our chosen journey. But maybe some would feel it necessary to create a log to chart one's journey and its options as a memoir to be read once again someday when the journey is done...

Stars:) Thanks. I am very happy for you!

Neophyte, thank you for sharing. It must have been difficult to write it all down here, you're so brave! A way to achieve closure, perhaps? (((hug)))

Icy Gazpacho, hi! Thanks for dropping by. Everything here creates a profound impression upon me in their own unique and respective ways. And I love your "wombat"!

Zelda, wise words indeed. What we experienced in the past would always serve as a guideline to tread our paths into the future. Thanks!

Beatlefan, I agree. Reflecting on other roads passed would sometimes lead to regret. But one could not help wondering, once in a while, you know what I mean? Thanks.

Fire and ice, thanks, dear. I must say that your life must have been very interesting! I appreciate you sharing this with us.

operacats, oh, I am truly sorry about your son! This must have been difficult for you to write. I am at loss for the appropriate words to say to you about this, but I am thankful that you are able to reflect like this. Here, have a hug!

Shai, hello! Thanks for your response; wise, as always. Living in the NOW is the way to live, indeed. Your words are always welcome, my friend...

Answer 1

I wonder if I ever wondered about where life would have taken me if I wasn't where I am right now. My being here wasn't even a decision i made. It was like I took a chance journey on a floating leaf and let the stream take me to where I never planned to be. I was always one free soul who didn't care much about the direction of the currents. If I saw some beauty across my bank, I would just swim to have a closer grasp of it whether or not it was worth the swim I made. I took unfamiliar turns along the road and never looked back. I drank from both the bitter and the sweet and found out I was quenched just the same.
Am I happy with this journey? Perhaps happiness on earth is never absolute since we do not live for ourselves alone. There is no way we could be guaranteed of a painless existence while we share this life with people who have thoughts and viewpoints in strong contrast with our own.
I always build bridges where I see gaps in my desire to cross differences,..and dare come closest as my limits allow... But sometimes, such intentions draw gaps wider apart rather than connect them. When this is the case, I just let things take their own course...And then I close my eyes against the truth accepted, and cast my cares into a deep slumber.
Tomorrow is another day,.. another road to travel,..another dream to explore,.. and to wonder back, is another precious minute lost in a lifetime.

Answer 2

I am a little older & yes, there have been times I have wondered. My early childhood was with an abusive mother. By the time I was in grade school I was pretty much destroyed. I spent my early 20's just plain unable to function for the most part. At 26 I met the woman who became my Mentor. She did not save my life, she helped me get a life. She taught me life, love & spirituality in the kitchen. (Don't sweat the small stuff, it's all small stuff, except pie crust, now that's important). For a long time I was angry about what had happened to me, such potential & all wasted. I wondered many a time what it could have been like if it had all been different. As my spiritual understanding & connection grew I was given a great gift. I was shown that everything I am today, & all I am yet to realize that I am has come about because of all these events. You will never get me to say it was fun while I was in them, but I can honestly tell you that I have recieved such gifts from all of it that I would not change it if I could. I have learned far more from my mistakes than I ever did from my successes. When I deliberate choices I may seek outside advice at first, but ultimately I will always look within, try to follow my own moral code, honestly try to do the right thing & follow my heart & inner connection. Once I have made that decision I will go for it with out appology or regret. This does not mean I won't make mistakes & even fall, but I won't spend time second guessing the decision once it is made. You are going to make mistakes, even fall occasionally, the only important thing is that you learn from each & everyone. Who you are & your coming to full realization of that is the goal. If your unhappy with some aspect of your life, be fearless & choose to change. Am I happy with my journey so far, yes, do I forget that sometimes, yes. This thing we call life is hard sometimes, it was not designed to always be easy. Today, I like myself, I'm comfortable in my own skin, which is way beyond a miracle for me.You see, from where I started to where I am today, it's not a leap that's even possible, I am finally becoming everything I always wanted to be but never thought I could, but then a gain I never walked alone , nobady does. Thanks for a inspiring Q. I needed it.
(((HUG)))

Answer 3

Hello shah, well I often do wonder yes but not because I am unhappy with my life, granted I have days that are not filled with roses and the sun is not shining but there great days too and many good ones. I wonder for a different reason, I question myself, the results of my decisions and the outcomes. I always ask myself could I do better or did I do the right thing, etc? Regarding family well some family are very much in my life and others are very little or not at all. I would have liked them to be but some are born trouble makers or intentionally hurt others so I chose to leave then behind. If they ever have a change of heart well then they will be welcomed. You see some in my family just enjoy making others sad or hurt and some use others for their material things and then just dump them after wards. Their are some really good people in my family who will help anyone and do anything for anyone but this is how they get taken advantage of. It is not very nice situation. My friends Yes, I do have regrets Some I would never have a regret or question about, then there are others who seemed to be my friend but when I needed them they weren't ever there or some pretended to be my friend and then went behind my back and insulted me, stole from or just plain used me. Needless to say there gone. Then there are the friends that I really like but may have hurt myself or even changed them in a way that is not good for them so I really have regrets about that, some people I wish I would never had met because I have done wrong to them mostly unintentional but still the change was not for the better. Relationships oh boy sure I had plenty of those but hey the one I'm with now is great. The one true one that i regret is one that tried to rape me and became very obsessive towards me, he stalked me and called constantly, it really disrupted my life and even many of my families lives. so that I truly do regret. beliefs, strangely no once I figured out what my beliefs are then they have stayed with me and I have never had a regret concerning them. Career oh Yes, this one probably the most. I'm not happy at my job and wish to change it, maybe one day I will but for now there are more important things to deal wit than a miserable job. this was a lovely question shah . thank you for asking it.

Answer 4

If I hadn't chose the wrong college, I probably would have ended up being a doctor. Then again I never would have given birth to my son or met my husband (he's my second husband). I also started down another path to become a science teacher. I even got certified and have a masters degree in science education, but decided after my student teaching for a number of reasons that it's not for me. Looking back I have to say I don't regret these decisions, because my life would be very different now. It's the next part that I want to think over carefully.

Answer 5

This is only a possibility if you have regrets. If there is disatisfaction, then regret can cause you to play the "WHAT IF" Game and ponder the roads not taken.

Or, if you have done something you are ashamed of, this too causes regrets and the desire to have done something differently.

Myself?? Yes, I have had regrets about the past, but part of becoming a self-realized being, a truly mature one, is to come to terms with your choices and to be happy in your human experience.

If you are feeling like you should have done something different, examine yourself and see what is making you unhappy at the moment. Chances are you can cure that in a way that the retro-trip will never be able to alleviate.

Being happy is a matter, to quote the great Zen philosophers, of the"Now"

It is better to aske are you happy in your NOW and if not why?

The past cannot make you happy and the pondering of past choices will only increase un happiness.

Choose the NOW and figure out that happy is a choice of desire and not of material matters.

If you choose, choose what makes you happy in the NOW because all other things change too much to be references for future possibilities.

Answer 6

Even the smallest of decisions could have an effect, if I tried to figure where I would be if I had decided otherwise, it would boggle the mind to contemplate. I just try to trust that regardless of what decisions I make, Spirit is handing me these situations in order to help me grow and learn whatever I am here to learn, and to guide me where I need to go. To dwell on the road not taken, is to dwell on regret. While the temptation is great to look at a decision made in the past, and assign blame to it for not being happy in one's current life, there is no guarantee that making the other decision would have led to any better alternative. To dwell too much on the past, distracts your attention in the present, and future. While one should learn from something that is clearly a mistake, something as small as deciding where to have lunch on any given day can completely alter your destiny. When making decisions at a cross roads, the only thing I can do is make the best decision I can with the information available to me, and go on.

Or are you happy with your journey so far?
I could have done alot worse:) I am who I am supposed to be, and where I am supposed to be, because of where I have been. (and I will be someone slightly different tomorrow, because I stopped in to contemplate on a question or 2)..........

Answer 7

Honestly, I have never "wondered" about had I chosen other paths. You see, there is no way I could even speculate on what the outcome might have been. I met each crossroad exactly as I did. When introspective, (which is often), I "could" say: If I hadn't taken that elevator, I'd never gotten the job with the horrid boss, BUT, I wouldn't have met so very special people, gotten the specific insights, followed the endless chain. This is like saying, Who would I be if I weren't me?
Without judgments or "speculation," the journey has been perfect balance, in harmony. Every temporarily perceived "mistake" has ultimately enriched me. (Painful as it might have been AT THE TIME.)
The journey of life flows like a river. Sometimes, our perception of it does not. Is this also a "choice" at yet another crossroad? Or is it truth & clarity of vision?

Answer 8

What makes your question poetic is that anyone can relate. The affects of single choices on a person's whole life is obvious. We all wonder how we got to our place and appreciate the irony of what could be otherwise. Or, we might have regrets. We might wonder if we could have taken a different turn and changed it all. There are those that try to take the burden of life's choices by blaming it all on an internal instinct. On fate. I personally think it's just a combination choice and chance. Gotta hope for the best and try to help ourselves as best as possible...

That's life.

Answer 9

Yes, shortly after our 20 year old son had committed suicide after taking the roof key to the roof of our 14 storey building and jumped to his death almost 3 years ago...I had a feeling of guilt come over me, because, if I was not the assistant superintendent and had to have the keys to our building, including the roof key, our son might not have done it...but, by the grace of god, within a week after his death, I was looking on his computer for possible clues and in his bookmarks he had a folder that I opened and it showed a job listing for high rise window cleaning...so the guilt left me and I was thankful to god for this and because he showed me that he would have done it anyway, but he would have jumped from another high rise building, [which meant I need not feel any guilt] So, yes to your question, I did wonder where life would have taken me if I had not been an assistant superintendent...but once I realized that our son was going to do it anyway then I knew it was meant to be and I no longer suffer from any guilt...only grief. And, yes I do wonder what life
nowadays would be like if our son did not die.

Answer 10

I never thought that the life would have taken me somewhere. To say honestly, I've really changed my character, and my attitude. I never knew that the people who never cared me, would become my friends. I am really happy with my journey. Before i wasn't good as I am now. My character was not good. But, I've changed a lot!=). I never expected that.In the journey of life, we meet many various points where we have to choose.
I never knew that I would be in Y!A and meet and have fun, make friends.Really, for all , i never thought that the life would take here.I am happy with my journey, but they are lots to change about myself!=)
As a child, i grew up with a good and caring family. But when I was a child, i didn't understand and realizes my parents love towards me. I used to oppose everything that they used to say me. I was really behaving so bad at that times:(. Even, i don't understand why I did like that. But, now I've changed a lot , my character, i love my parents:). Even, i was not going easy with everyone,.....i tend to be alone..always alone, not mingle with anyone..but now I've understood that humans and people are needed for us,, and how great is their caring!.
I really can't even believe that how can life take me somewhere, where i had an chance to change myself!
To say from my heart, I've changed a lot. But, i don't know how is that. I thank god for everything! :)

Have a great day!. Thanks for asking! =)