If you could turn back “time,” what would you change?

If you could turn back “time,” what would you change? 

~Beth Corbin 

My friend (we’ll call him Jon) posed a question and the question was if you could turn back “time,” what would you change?

My response was the following:  My choices are what made me who I am today, no regrets... BUT if I put a spin on the question and really turn back time, I would put us back in the time where people really paid attention, and truly knew who you were; unfortunately most people are too shallow or selfish to discern that in today's society.

I would go back to a time when the people helped each other out of the goodness of their heart, when people worked together for a common good, like raising a neighbor’s lodge or barn and bartered or traded for goods and services, and took care of their own in the village… back to a time when if you lied, cheated or stole items, or a man’s wife, you were kicked out and shunned… and chances are you wouldn’t survive out there alone.

Jon responded by saying my answer rang with a tone of bitterness.

That puzzled me a little; so I continued:  No bitterness here.  My answer was I am what I am from the choices I made and I am a strong, healthy, prosperous, intelligent woman.  I live in peace with no regrets. The spin is my observation as a psychologist, and my hope for people to get back to a more respectful time/place.                

I explained how my life had changed since the two years in which we had dated passed.  I don't even regret marrying --, his nearly killing me is what forced me to make a choice to live.  It's clinging to life is what deepened my spirituality and opened my mind/world to these new possibilities.  Though, I would have never taken my life and it is not in my character or belief system, I had (at one time, and near the time we had become friends), no desire or oomph to be here. 

Today, I am renewed and have a new zeal, and really enjoy the blessing of who I am.  I live in the now, and the coolest part:  I was afraid of being alone when I met you; which made me a completely different person (in and of).  That old life and all the drama, strife, turmoil, lies, deceit… that were dumped here in that bad storm are now gone.  Now, I am in love; wrapped in LOVE and I have such peace about me.  I love being alone with me now and it’s a good place to be.

Some people will say "you are so strong," or “s/he is strong for putting up with,”  or  make references to you being strong in that storm you are in…  When actually, we are strong when we are in our calm-peaceful stature; when everything is good.  That is time and space when we are not allowing drama, and turmoil to interfere in our walk. We were weakest when we made those choices that allowed the storm, and weakest by not getting out of the storm.