Are you proud of yourself?

[DON SVO]

A lot of the members here who know me well know my mother passed away due to her COPD from smoking. I have held a lot of myself back for quite some time, a lot of it stemming from my relationship with my mother. It wasn't pretty, and her death was very sudden. I had no chance to right my 'wrongs', as it were.

A week back I finally forced myself to go to Indiana and see her. All I can say is that when I decided I would go, it was like a mountain was lifted off of me. Seeing her headstone mounted and her where she wanted to be in the family plot was a tremendous emotional release. I was able to let go of a lot of troubling things and hopefully, I can continue to sort out some things in my life I've certainly neglected. I do feel good about myself now, so it's time to act on it.

I've been wanting to post a thread like this for some time. How do you feel you measure up to your expectations? Are there things you need to let go of in order to better yourself?

[Geor!]

There's not enough space on this message board to post all of my shit.

[kingjason]

No.

I have no use for most of my relatives. People are people blood or not, once I am done with you I am done. Do not beat yourself up over it alot of people are this way.

My no was in answer to your last question. Yes is my answer to your first.

[R1psycho]

In my younger days, I would cut ties over nonsense and just keep everything bottled up, which usually ended up with me pissed off all of the time and keeping to myself. I had a pretty shitty up bringing and placed blame where it shouldn't have been placed. Now that I am a little bit older, I decided that I would let alot of the small things slide and try to be there for family and friends when needed. Life is too short and you just never know. I am one of the most mellow people you will ever meet compared to what I used to be.

So to answer you, yes I am proud that I was able to control my anger and not let it get the best of me. I still have a shit ton of issues to work out, but I take it a day at a time.

[ELVIS]

i know i'm nothing to be proud of, but as long as Jr. doesnt I feel i am doing alright.

god bless.

[Vertnut]

As I've gotten older, I tend to be a little more deliberate about what I do/say to people I care about. They all know how I feel about them at any time. You never know when you'll draw your last breath, and I don't want anyone left wondering.

[DON SVO]

In my younger days, I would cut ties over nonsense and just keep everything bottled up, which usually ended up with me pissed off all of the time and keeping to myself. I had a pretty shitty up bringing and placed blame where it shouldn't have been placed. Now that I am a little bit older, I decided that I would let alot of the small things slide and try to be there for family and friends when needed. Life is too short and you just never know. I am one of the most mellow people you will ever meet compared to what I used to be.

So to answer you, yes I am proud that I was able to control my anger and not let it get the best of me. I still have a shit ton of issues to work out, but I take it a day at a time.

That sounds a lot like me. My mother smoked until the day she died, and I hated myself for not being able to help her. Essentially, it's taken about 2 1/2 years to wash away that stigma... the feeling that I was a failure the ONE time I needed to shine. It wasn't my fault, I knew it was her choice: it's just now that I finally allowed myself to accept that I can't always fix everything for everyone. Trying to hide it all was a total failure.

[Zfan]

We all carry around a lot of baggage, some more than others. I try to forgive and forget, just move on so to speak. Life is to short, we all have regrets!

[Ratt]

We all carry around a lot of baggage, some more than others. I try to forgive and forget, just move on so to speak. Life is to short, we all have regrets!

This. I do more than my fair share of forgiving-and-forgetting. There's not a whole lot that someone can do to me to make me try to completely cut ties with them. I can truthfully say there are fewer people than the number of fingers on one hand that I truly hate, and there's really only one person that I would never care to speak with ever again, even if it meant I would not want for anything again for the rest of my life.

[jluv]

I'm pretty sure my mother's side of the family (not including her) would be happier and more proud of me if I had gone to college, wasn't living with my girlfriend instead of being married, and they'd be really disappointed in me if they knew I wasn't a Christian. That said, they love me and don't outwardly judge me. They are proud of who I've become. And that's nice, but I really don't concern myself with what they think, anyway. I am happy and proud of myself. I don't carry around regret, and I try to live day by day and focus on good things around me. Any other way will eat you up, I believe.

[dumpycapri85]

You can love people in your life but still not like them . You also can't change people or make then do or act how you want even when what you want is the best thing for them . None of the choices other people make are our fault but they affect our lives just like our choices affect there's . You have to decied if the problems your family causes you are worth dealing with the negative affects . Does your love and any positives you gain out weigh the bad and can you live with it . Zfan is dead on . We all have it and the test of life is learning to carry it while trying to live the best life you can . Just remember people only have the power to affect your life if you give it to them . Playing it safe will save you pain but you also will miss out on the great feelings those relationships can give when things are right . Its a risk we all take .

[GTChick01]

Yes, I'm proud of myself. I feel like I've worked hard to get where I'm at today. I was the first one on my mom's side of the family to graduate high school, let alone college. I can honestly say that I love my job, I love my career choice, and I love my life. Any and everything I've ever had I've worked for. Of course there are some things that I am not proud of that I've done in my past, but I don't dwell on them. I try to learn from them and not make the same mistakes twice.

[DON SVO]

You can love people in your life but still not like them . You also can't change people or make then do or act how you want even when what you want is the best thing for them . None of the choices other people make are our fault but they affect our lives just like our choices affect there's . You have to decied if the problems your family causes you are worth dealing with the negative affects . Does your love and any positives you gain out weigh the bad and can you live with it . Zfan is dead on . We all have it and the test of life is learning to carry it while trying to live the best life you can . Just remember people only have the power to affect your life if you give it to them . Playing it safe will save you pain but you also will miss out on the great feelings those relationships can give when things are right . Its a risk we all take.

That right there is the point in life I am at, and the "safe play" extended into a lot of my relationships well before and then after my mom passed... you couldn't have phrased it any better!

[dumpycapri85]

That right there is the point in life I am at, and the "safe play" extended into a lot of my relationships well before and then after my mom passed... you couldn't have phrased it any better!

That is something my Dad told me a long time ago when I was pushing everyone in my life away to be safe emotionaly . I lost the 3 people in my life I loved the most and just did not want anymore pain . Time has let me open up again and now I have a wife and son that have filled the whole . I still miss them everyday but now I understand what I would have missed out on if I would have never opened myself up . Its all highs and lows but these are the things that give us depth and worth as a person . I am proud of who I am and I am getting better every day .

[DON SVO]

That is something my Dad told me a long time ago when I was pushing everyone in my life away to be safe emotionaly . I lost the 3 people in my life I loved the most and just did not want anymore pain . Time has let me open up again and now I have a wife and son that have filled the whole . I still miss them everyday but now I understand what I would have missed out on if I would have never opened myself up . Its all highs and lows but these are the things that give us depth and worth as a person . I am proud of who I am and I am getting better every day .

LOL get out of my head, Charles!