It might have been

It Might Have Been

Years and years ago I read this quote and it stuck in my mind like a fish bone occasionally does in your throat. Every time I felt like I’d missed an opportunity or something didn’t go the way I thought it would…I thought about those words. It comes from the following quote.

For all sad words of tongue and pen, The saddest are these, ‘It might have been’. John Greenleaf Whittier

Even though my minor was English I confess I couldn’t remember much about Mr. Whittier. I googled him to refresh my memory. The entry wasn’t too informative but I did learn he had an impressive 70th birthday party with lots of famous guests. You can read more about him here

I had no idea if Mr. Whittier was thinking of a lost love when he wrote those words so I googled that as well and if Wikipedia is right, he was definitely thinking about a missed opportunity.

The thing is now that I’m in the 4th quarter of my life I hear those words but think about them differently. Yes, there are lots of things that might have been but what about the things that replaced them?

If we sit around and pine about things that might have been we are missing other opportunities that might be even better for us than the first thing that didn’t work out. One of my favorite lines from the Nicholas Sparks book that was made into the movie “A Walk To Remember” says, “Maybe God has a bigger plan for me than I had for myself.”

This week I’m in the Florida Keys with my husband of almost 40 years. We went back to the campground where we met and walked out to the dock where we had our first kiss. Even though we had just met I knew we were going to get married. I just felt it. I didn’t know we would raise five children and have a whole passel of grandchildren that I love and adore.

Was my husband my first love? No, but he was my BEST love, my last love, the one who was meant for me.

While John Greenleaf Whittier wrote great poetry he might have forgotten the most important thing. Man plans. God laughs. Trust God to lead you and forget about the things that might have been.

That’s my best advice for the day. What’s yours?