I saw an awesome quote the other day: “Don’t look back, you’re not going that way.” Wow! How profound. I don’t know why, but human nature has cursed all of us a bit—we too often dwell on the past when there’s not a thing we can do to change it. It can be something small, or something earth-shattering, but regardless of the size of our regrets, y’all, there is no going back. And I know that’s a bitter pill to swallow sometimes. I think people who are heavy sleepers are crazy-lucky because it’s incredibly miserable to awaken at 3 a.m., only to be visited by your unwelcome past—all those mistakes and missteps love to bang around inside our heads in the middle of the night.

I’m a firm believer that everything seems worse when you’re tired, and chewing on old bad news when you’re lying awake in bed is akin to being forced to eat a cauliflower steak: it’s distasteful and downright wrong! (Have y’all seen those on Pinterest? A big ol’ slice of cauliflower grilled like a steak? Nasty! But, I’m digressing…) I once had a sweet little old lady (who lived to be 99 years old, by the way) tell me: “Once you’ve made a tough decision, it’s done. Never look back, regardless of the outcome.” I believe that little gem of wisdom, and I do my best to follow it. Because, here’s the deal: when we go back and second-guess our decisions and revisit our regrets, we somehow think things would’ve been perfect if we’d just chosen a different path. That’s just not so. Why, you ask? Because, there are no guarantees. In our pretty little heads, we’ll design a past created out of “I should’ve” and “I could’ve” and “if I had only,” and, well, maybe that past would’ve created a perfect future, but maybe not!

I could look back on my life, my career, and second-guess a few decisions (yeah, y’all know I’ve probably done that…who hasn’t?). But, all of my decisions, good and bad, have led me to where I am today. Should I have gone straight to a school that specialized in design? Maybe. But, I didn’t. I went to Texas Tech, and every step I made from the time I graduated from high school and departed that big, sweet, secure ranch I called home has been a journey.

They were my choices, my mistakes, my triumphs and, on occasion, my sorrows. But, stacked atop one another, they’ve made me who I am. In the light of day, I’m unapologetic about who I am. So, gals, let’s make a pact. Flee the past, keep your eyes on the horizon, and whatever you do, don’t look back, you’re not going that way!