The path not taken

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbour. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”

'Sail away' as Enya once advised.

An inspiring quote for many that, from the American author Mark Twain. Of course, it does make a lot of sense in a number of ways, encouraging you to take on challenges and test yourself. 

However, the fact that you may be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do in your life over the ones you did is pretty much unavoidable really. Most people, if not all of us, will have doubts, questions and in some cases even regrets over things we could have done but didn’t. There will always be a path we didn’t take. 

Life is all about decisions – choosing one thing over another, or not as the case may be. Throw in the fact that we only live once – well, as far as most of us believe and are aware that is the case – and it becomes extremely difficult to do everything that we desire.

The most important part in Twain’s words, from our point of view, is “Sail away from the safe harbour.” In other words, get out of your comfort zone when and where possible. If you feel your life has become stale and staid, that’s usually a good sign to make a fresh break, spice things up so to speak. Obviously for some this should be relatively easier to do than others. 

For example, those who are married or have long-term partners must balance their own desires with those of their significant other if they are serious about their relationship. 

The freedom you might have to “Explore. Dream. Discover” becomes even more compromised if you have children. Much of your responsibility becomes tied up in their development and desires – at least it should.

"Which way, 'Wrong Way'?"

Even without such ‘constraints’ on your ability to sail away or opt for a new direction, it can be difficult to leave behind your current life, even if it’s not exactly making you happy or giving you a sense of fulfilment. Very often a human being’s adventurous spirit is hindered by his/her fear of the unknown. 

It’s in this scenario where Twain’s quote comes into play. This is when you must ask yourself if the path you’re currently on is really the right one. 

Whatever about choosing one thing over another where the correct option doesn’t seem that obvious or indeed there isn’t a clear right or wrong choice, sticking with something that isn’t delivering you happiness, never mind not challenging you, is unwise to say the least. 

At times all it may require is a short break from a certain way of life or location – it doesn’t always have to be a complete transformation – to get you back on track, re-energise you so to speak. Even in the most restrictive of situations, dire even, there is an out, a new way.

Some may argue that financial constraints can make changing the course of your life difficult. Yes, money or the lack of it can play a part. 

For somebody who might be struggling to know where their next meal is coming from, seeing a way out of such a life can be difficult to envisage. Plus, from a Western, ‘developed world’ perspective (or minority-world view as some countries outside of this group quite accurately term it) quite literally ‘sailing away’ can be much easier than for those in the ‘developing world’.

'Wrong way, turn back.'

But we can, all of us, strive for change or look to alter the direction of our life, if that is our want. If you know deep inside that the path you’re currently on is not the right one for you and you have the ability to change it, then the plan should be to seek to do just that. 

To “throw off the bowlines” as Twain puts it. Eliminating regrets from your life may be difficult to achieve, but at the very least you can try to reduce them.


* For related articles see: "'Wrong Way' begins" http://bit.ly/VtvYn1 & 'Taking stock' http://bit.ly/YE0wQo