Regrets
Mid-week Reflection
“My one regret in life is that I am not someone else.”
― Woody Allen
― Woody Allen
Bronnie Ware for many years cared for patients in the last twelve weeks of their lives. The Australian hospice nurse has recorded their dying insights in her blog, Inspiration and Chai (http://www.inspirationandchai.com/Regrets-of-the-Dying.html), and also in her book called The Top Five Regrets of the Dying: A Life Transformed by the Dearly Departing.
Here are the top five regrets of the dying, as witnessed by Ware:
1. I wish I'd had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.
2. I wish I hadn't worked so hard.
3. I wish I'd had the courage to express my feelings.
4. I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends.
5. I wish that I had let myself be happier.
In the Parable of the Rich Fool (Luke 12:13-21), Jesus tells the story of a wealthy farmer facing a bumper crop who realizes he cannot possibly store all the produce about to be harvested. So he makes elaborate plans to tear down the old barns and replace them with larger ones before the harvest. He describes to himself how good things will be when he’s completed his plan: “Friend, you have many good things stored up for years to come. So take it easy; eat, drink, and enjoy yourself.” But God says to him, “You idiot! This very night—before you can do any of this—your life will be required of you! Now who’s going to get all that you have prepared?” Luke, the narrator, adds, “That is how it will be for anyone who piles up treasures for himself and is not rich with God.”
The hospice nurse’s comments remind us that living happily is a matter of living in integrity and honesty about ourselves, and this is clearly implied in Jesus’ condemnation of being distracted by secondary matters in this parable.
What do you truly regret? How can you change things so that you feel happier about things?
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