Every moment in time is connected to the one before it…
When reflecting on past decisions, people often believe they could have been more conscious in the past and not made that “one bad decision”. We can’t compartmentalize any one incident or event and separate it from our entire life. 
Although sometimes it seems like it, there is never one event that changes your life instantly. There are tons of events that lead up to every decision. A young man may say, If I hadn’t gotten in the car that night drunk, I wouldn’t have had the accident. This is true and yet in order for the event not to have happened he would need to change all the other factors that lead up to the accident, including his frame of mind. The list of variables are endless: meeting the friend who invited him to the party, getting introduced to the guy with the booze, trying to impress others by keeping up with their drinking, leaving the party instead of spending the night as planned, and even as far back as his parents meeting in college and conceiving him and moving to that town. If just one of those variables were different than the accident wouldn’t have happened.
There are always a series of millions of events that lead to every choice and then many circumstances that affect each event. You would have to go all the way back to the beginning of time to change any one event because every moment in time is connected to the one before it. Do you see my point? The great news is- we can stop being so hard on ourselves for any one particular past event that creates present suffering. There are always a chain of events, even when it doesn’t seem so.
When we look back, we are judging what we did in the past from our current view and level of awareness in this present moment.
Everything is interconnected. We never entirely have complete control over any situation. No day or moment can ever be repeated exactly the same. Therefore, we don’t have control, even when we think we do. We simply don’t know what’s around each corner. We do the best we can to anticipate, so we don’t suffer. No matter what anyone says, it’s just not always possible to prevent mistakes. This is not an excuse and we still have to be accountable to the fullest extent, but understanding we did the best we could at any given moment in time, helps us. We can let go and forgive ourselves or others. We can awaken and gain clarity. Even that depends on the level of personal insight we have now. Have you seen people jumping from one bad relationship to the next and it’s so obvious to everyone else, yet they don’t see it? Our decisions reflect our present awareness.
When we look back, we are judging what we did in the past from our current view and level of awareness in this present moment. So be gentle on your self. Let go of the past and accept what is. No matter how bad your past decision seems right now, it was meant to happen because of who you were at the time. Some personal reflection is necessary to improve, but much depression is caused by regrets. Don’t waste your life ruminating or agonizing about what you could have done differently. Connect the dots and keep coloring. You know yourself better now and your higher level of consciousness has given you insight. If you could have made a better choice in the past- you would have! When you keep going back mentally, you are not honoring your precious existence. You waste the time you have now. Appreciate the awareness you have acquired. You can be grateful that you have the capacity to live with a higher mindset. Whether you choose to stay stuck in regrets or move forward with the knowledge you did the best you could, can mean the difference between suffering and inner peace. Choose peace!
Written By: Maryrose Mitchell