"If I had my life to live over, I would start barefoot earlier in the spring and stay that way later in the fall. I would go to more dances. I would ride more merry-go-rounds. I would pick more daisies." (Nadine Stair)
Have you ever thought about what you might do differently if you had your life to live over? Or maybe what you want to do in the days you have left?
One time at a writers' retreat we were challenged to dream big and set goals for ourselves. What did we want to happen in the year ahead in our writing careers? I came up with a couple of big dreams. Neither thing happened that year or since. They are still dreams.
Then, when I think about having over twenty-five of my books published, that would have been a really big dream for me when I started writing many years ago. But now sometimes I look back and wonder if I could have done this or that differently. Perhaps written more books or better books. At the same time, I feel blessed that I have been able to write some stories that have kept people reading. To have created some characters readers have invited into their hearts.
We lost one of our church people this week. He had a good long life, but his family will miss him. Attending a funeral can make a person think about her own numbered days and wonder. Am I taking advantage of the blessings the Lord has showered down on me? What would I go back in time and do differently if I could? Would I lie in the grass and not worry about chiggers while I celebrated spring? Would I plant more flowers and eat more strawberries straight from the vine? Would I make more time away from my keyboard for family and friends? Would I take more time to listen and use less time talking? Would I cherish the moments and not rush the days?
Regrets are useless. We can't go back. We can only live forward. Perhaps the thing we all need to do most is look around and enjoy the journey.
What would you do differently if you could live your life over?
St. Louis - the Gateway to The West. Some might say St. Louis was the second gateway to the west, because at one time the Cumberland Gap into Kentucky was considered the western gateway. In the frontier days, the western frontier kept getting just a little farther west all the time as the pioneers kept moving on in search of land and gold.
But they say if you're in St. Louis, you should go to the top of the Arch and look where you're headed and where you've been. So Darrell and I can mark that one off our bucket list. Here we are at the top of the Arch.
First we were warned not to buy tickets if we were claustrophobic or couldn't do stairs. No, not because they thought the tram might break down, but because steps lead to the little cars of the tram. Don't the cars look like something out of Star Trek? With his newly repaired knee, Darrell had a hard time crawling inside and then bumped his head on the short ceiling. Plus he had that walking staff. But he was a sport and the view from the top was fantastic even though the windows were merely small, rectangular slits implanted in the curve of the Arch.
We rode up with a couple from New Zealand and down with a couple from California. Isn't that one of the fun things about being tourists? Meeting other tourists.
And a great thing about being at the International Christian Retailers' Show was meeting people from all over the world plus some other writers I've heard so much about and read their books. One of those was Irene Hannon who was signing one of her popular mystery suspense books, Vanished, at the Baker Books Booth. I missed out on getting her book. The line was too long, but I did get a photo with her before the signing.
I also was fortunate to be able to sign an advance reader copy of my book, Christmas at Harmony Hill for the people at the show. So that was fun and you know what? That's something else I can cross off my bucket list. It was fun meeting so many booksellers and Christian book store owners from all across our nation and the world. I shared a table during a break time with a couple from Hong Kong, signed books for people from Nigeria and Malaysia and Australia. Meet a few Canadians too. All good fun in St. Louis.
Remember about my fun contests going on now to celebrate the release of Small Town Girl. Check out the details on my website or my June 9 blog post, "Celebration Giveaway Fun." Easy to enter and you might win two dozen roses or wind chimes or books. I got lots of autographed books at the convention that I will be giving away in the months ahead. Yay!! But first we'll celebrate my new release. There's also a Facebook contest going on my Facebook author's page. Click on the Win $50 Gift Cards tab there to see details on how you might win if you order Small Town Girl. Worth checking out. Not that many have entered as yet.
Thanks for reading and I'll share some more flower stories Sunday - probably. You never know where I might head off to here on my journal. But I do thank you for tagging along.
What's on your bucket lists of things you want to do before your time here on earth is through?
"If I had my life to live over, I would start barefoot earlier in the spring and stay that way later in the fall. I would go to more dances. I would ride more merry-go-rounds. I would pick more daisies." (Nadine Stair)
