Yesterday I Made A Mistake...

Thought and Poem – December 15, 2014

As children, we use to sit under the shade of the trees in our back yard and talk about all that we were going to do differently when we grew up and became parents. We swore on “scout’s honor,” that we would NEVER do to our children what our parents did to us. We were going to excel in parenthood and we would show our parents what they should have been doing with us all along. Right? Did you have to eat your words? I did!

I wish I could do the first part of parenthood all over again. No one has to tell me that I made many mistakes and some of them more than once. I was blessed with two children so whatever I did wrong we can multiply all of it times two.

Right now I am in stage two of parenthood. Stage two is where your children survived living in your home and moved out on their own. You know how they can make you so proud for the success they are reaping in the goals they set and the accomplishments they have achieved even though you know you messed up here and there along the way.

Then it happens. They find their true love, settle down and have children of their own. You listen to them talk about how they are going to be different parents and raise their children differently than how they were raised and most importantly, they were going to keep their eyes on you when you visited with them and their children. They will leave you no slack or give you any chances to make mistakes in the first part of grandparenthood. In this stage, you roll your eyes, whisper, “just you wait,” under your breath and it takes all the angels in heaven to keep laughing under control when you see your kids eat their words.

With all this being said, we can’t turn back the clocks, we can’t change the mistakes we have made and we can’t make any it better with a Band-Aid and kiss. We just need to keep trying to do better tomorrow.

What about you? Did you do better than your parents and do better at life in general once you left home in your younger days? Share your thoughts with us…Jeanne Claire Probst

Yesterday I made a Mistake

Yesterday I made a mistake

My guilt I cannot make go away.

What can I do or what can I say

To help me move on and have a better day today?

Remember that you can’t change what you did in the days long gone

But you can learn from what you did wrong.

You don’t have to drag the baggage with you each day

For the wisdom you have gained will guide you next time to choose a better way.

So learn from your mistakes

Take deep breaths and new steps take

Remember guilt stays only if you choose to live in the past

And in the bad memories bask.

Today allows you the freedom to turn a new leaf

Try hard each day to let go of your grief.

Be brave, be strong, and remember what you have gained

Hopefully you will have a better day and your guilt will fade away.

Jeanne Claire Probst