Opposite of Regret

So I’ve gone another far too long without writing. I guess I just didn’t want to replace such an upbeat post as the latest. Health problems have been creating issues here lately, and I’ve been failing more and more catastrophically at my goal of not dwelling on what’s happening. In my irrepressible Rystefn fashion, I’ve been trying to twist that into something worthwhile, though. We all know that we are mortal, at least, those of us who aren’t living in a fantasy world, anyway. Few of us, however, are given to know, even in the broadest sense, how long we might have. Some of you may have noticed that my online presence at night has all but disappeared this last week or so. I’ve taken to caring a bit more about what I leave behind me, and I’ve been using my nights to say goodbye while I still can. Some people have begun to notice that I look unwell, and since I still stand my purpose of keeping this out of certain ears, my time to do so is rather more limited than the already short time I might otherwise have.

I’ve tried to live my life with no regrets, and I’ve been far more successful than most people on that front, I think. Now, I’m trying to remedy the last few, and to make sure I don’t collect any new ones in the time I have left. I’m not sure if there’s a word that’s the opposite of regret in English, but here is a list of things that I opposite of regret.

• My last words to my grandmother before she died were “I love you.”
• I have stood inside buildings crafted by humans before even the seeds of my own culture were sown.
• I have seen, in person, the work of such masters as DaVinci and Michelangelo.
• I have made love with a beautiful woman in the rain.
• I have chopped down a tree with an axe.
• I have sailed so far that I couldn’t see the lights of the shore and gazed up at the uncounted stars.
• I have created works of art which will live on beyond me.
• I have been moved to tears by music.
• I have lived on a continent other than the one on which I was born.
• I have spoken to people who do not understand a word of my native language.
• I have changed my mind.
• My mind has been changed by others.
• I spent the last penny I had…
• …on a woman.
• I raised animals for several generations in the same bloodline, seeing reproduction with variation with my own eyes.
• I cried when some of them were selected against.
• I have been to parties so good that I’m not sure how they ended.
• I spent ten thousand dollars on a party once.
• I have fired a cannon.
• I remember every person I have ever slept with…
• …I have never counted them.
• The language “barrier” is not high enough to stop me from having sex with someone with whom I did not share a tongue. Some things need no words.
• I made homemade jam.
• I’ve worn a space suit
• As a practical joke, I’ve left two wills with mutually exclusive instructions on how to deal with my remains.
• When I say, “I’ll be there with bells on,” it’s not an expression.
• I don’t know what it’s like to blend into a crowd.
• I have lived up to my philosophy that if you there are not people in your life that hate you, you’re living it wrong.
• I have known love in my life. I’ve loved and been loved. This, above all, has made my life worth something.

I hope that I can fill my last days with as much joy as I’ve known so far. You’ve all helped me on that front, and I thank you.