Second Helpings

Regrets and Reading

I commented to vivacious recently that attending writing courses and spending a lot of time attempting to perfect the art of writing has affected the way I read. I won't use the word spoiled as it is too strong, but somewhere down the line I realised that as I read a book I now tend to analyse the content and style of writing as well as absorbing the story. I'm not sure whether this is a good thing or not.

Sometimes I wonder how some authors manage to get into print and find their style, phrasing and unnecessary padding most irritating. The upside of this is the fact I think I could maybe write better stuff myself, which gives my confidence a boost. Other times I'll come across a phrase or an idea that strikes me as so profound I have to go back and reread it several times. The downside of this is that I know I could never come up with something as clever and it knocks my own confidence as a writer.

Other times events, opinions and conversations in books trigger thoughts and questions. One chapter in the book I am presently reading begins with a young girl asking her mother if she has any regrets. The conversation drifts on for a while, but eventually the mother concludes the biggest regrets are always for the things you haven't done rather than the things you have. I found my self debating this one as soon I woke up this morning.

In the words of Mr Sinatra 'Regrets I've had a few'... hundred. But when we start to analyse we can often conclude one of our earliest regrets in life may have wiped out a multitude of others if we had taken a different road at that time. It's a complex topic and as the past cannot be altered it's a pretty pointless exercise to waste time contemplating.

But hand on heart, I can honestly say the majority of my own regrets are definitely things I HAVE done, not things I haven't. Yes I regret not writing a book, not travelling more, not winning the lottery, not being superfit and not discovering the elixir of life, but these things don't really affect my mental state, my attitudes or my day-to-day life. Whereas the things I HAVE done that I regret certainly do. So I would argue with that statement, although I have to say it's a very good book I'm reading.

Food for thought maybe. One thing I may or may not regret is the temptation to murder my newly knee replaced other half. The familiar clacking crutches, wall-to-wall sport on television and invasions of the kitchen when I sit down with a coffee to read my very good book may only seem like small irritations, but sometimes it's the little things that drive us to do something much bigger that we may live to regret.

Perhaps I should add not being more patient and tolerant as one of my regrets.