Some photos came up on a School Reunion Face Book group I am a member of. As I browsed though the post I found myself thinking about those times. I read the posts from my old school friends and began to feel a little remorseful and sad. My time at High School was less than fulfilling for me, I had made myself an outcast without realising. After leaving school I began to loose contact with my school friends. Between work and a passion for cars I moved into a different circle of contacts.

Reading the posts brought up feelings of regret and sadness for what I had missed out on. The cogs of negativity, self doubt and fear were beginning to turn. Fortunately I applied the handbrake of common sense and exited the highway to self pity. I quickly remembered the waste of time and energy that it takes to focus on negativity. Yes the feelings were valid, but not real.

Regret has no real value other than to make us stop, review our lives and make a course correction. Wallowing it in serves no greater good, it only leads to lowering self worth. Yes, making the effort years ago to maintain relationships with a group of wonderful people may have had it benefits. In reality I was moving in a different direction, creating new friends, exploring different paths through this mystery we call Life.

Regret, like all negative emotions has a physical effect on the body if it continues for too long. It increases our stress levels, weaken our immune system and can have a corrosive effect on our mental and emotional well being.

In life we have two choices, to feed our healthy wolf, or to feed our negative wolf. The one we feed wins and governs our lives. It might be useful to choose wisely.