15 Years

Well my friend, Jacqui tagged me with this little task of looking back on one's life and what have you learned (well that's the way I"m going to approach it anyway) in the last 15 years.

Think back on the last 15 years of your life. What would you tell someone that you haven’t seen or talked to for 15 years? How would you sum up your life? You get 10 bullet points. A list of 10 things to summarize about you. At the end of your list, tag 5 more people and send on the love…

well here goes....
In the last 15 years I have learned that:

• I am NOT as smart as I was 15 years ago and I do not know as much as I thought I did back then.
• Getting divorced will not solve all my problems and make me happy. Unless you are having the snot beat out of you, keep trying and go to counseling and keep trying and suck it up because no one is going to make you be happy.
  
• The new man/husband in your life will not necessarily be better (well hopefully he will) but he will be different and the same all at the same time. Men are men. They are not going to fulfill our dreams, be the reason for our existence or solve all of our problems. They are our partners and they are not perfect (neither are we) and we will struggle through life, challenges and daily drudgeries hopefully together. If you are not happy with yourself you won't find fulfillment in someone else. Work on you first and the rest will fall in place.
  
• Getting a second chance at raising children and not making the same mistakes you made before is possible, however, you will make new mistakes to take the place of the previous mistakes. Count on it. It will happen. I know this for sure.
  
• I do not love the gray hairs, wrinkles or the 'parts' that are not in the same place on my body that they were 15 years ago. However I have come to accept them and realize that I worked very hard for them. I have lived a life full of fun, excitement, love, mistakes, problems, etc. Those hairs, wrinkles and fallen parts are all part of that experience and although I sometimes think I would change them (and would if I could) I realize that they are all part of who I have become.
• Parents are not your enemy. (This should probably be #1)
  
• You are never too old to learn a new hobby. In the last 9 years since being in Georgia, I have learned to quilt, sew on a machine, and knit and I'm pretty good at it.
• Anyone can change if they want to bad enough. I am one who has and it can be done.
  
• Children are great. Life would not be the same to me without them. Children will stretch you and grow you in directions you never thought possible. They will challenge and delight you. They will make you question your sanity, frequently. They will love you without restraint (unless they are mad and then they will hate you with the same fervor).
• Grandchildren are better. They are God's way of letting you laugh at your children as they deal with the same things that drove you crazy about them. You get to be the good guy this time. You can be the one who is fun and playful and has time for the little guys instead of being too busy cleaning something to deal with them. You can also send them home. God is sooo cool!!

I have no idea who to tag but if you read this and would like to participate let me know so I can see what exactly you have learned in the last 15 years....