Reply #32: there is no such thing as wasted time [View All]

except, maybe, staying bitter about prior choices. Whatever you were -- or were not -- doing is over. Your choices today -- to feel bitter or to learn -- are all that there is. It's ok to feel the bitterness -- to acknowledge it, recognize it, own it. But then let it go, or it will define your now.

My 20s were "wasted" in that I spent most of it in clinical depression, in therapy, without a career or decent job, dating 2 men who were really bad for me. I also healed some wounds, discovered Carlos Castaneda, and had some amazing shamanic experiences as a result of reading out them.

And when I turned 30, I found a career and a direction I hadn't had before, gave up on men and returned to horses, and discovered a group of friends that introduced me to much of the new age system.

In my 40s, my friends parted ways, but my career took off and I freed myself from debt and was well on my way to a secure retirement (one of the small percentage who's savings was 'on track.'

My 50s have also been "wasted." I've lost my career, my entire retirement fund, my identity (literally stolen by a former colleague using inside info), and my dream, and I've been forced to take on debt. I also learned to be really totally alone, learned medicinal herbs, gardening, very basic carpentry, got 2 companion dogs, found purpose even in a minimum wage sandwich shop, and am hopefully on track for a new career with more meaning. Oh, oops, and found a new set of new ager friends at ASAH ;)