I’ve just read ‘The Midnight Library’ by Matt Haig. It is a beautiful book, and I recommend it wholeheartedly. Reading it felt a little like being wrapped up in a warm hug.

It looks at regret, and the energy we can waste on it. It also looks at the idea of a ‘perfect’ life vs a real life with all its ups and downs and imperfections. It highlights the importance of exploring the small things that make life worth living. Recognising the difference we make to the people around us who we don’t necessarily see or notice. Focusing on the relationships that support us, and learning to appreciate them – even though they may sometimes be challenging or feel like they are not enough.

It looks at big dreams, and what they might feel like if they are achieved, and then at what life could have been like in different, parallel universes – the one where you ended that relationship, chose a different job or moved to a different place.

What are your regrets? What are the decisions/choices that still get stuck in your head – the ‘what if’s”. I often wonder what my life would have been like if I had not stayed in the relationship I am in (almost 30 years now)… or if I had taken up good therapy much earlier… or stayed in employment and not started my own business.

I’m fairly good at not getting too stuck and just looking with idle curiosity but I know others who do get stuck – spending huge chunks of time ruminating on what might have been, or regretting choices made long since. Where do you sit on that spectrum? What could you let go of?

Sarah

A Moodscope member.