Go and look back once

You know the saying, "Go and never look back". Well, I have my own--"go, but look back once". How many times was someone leaving home and you see that they forgot something or the phone rings for them? You run out as they drive out of the driveway and yell and jump up and down and wave--even though they can't see you. If only they had looked back just once.

I try to make it a habit just in case. One last glance at the door as you pull away--one last look can save you from buying a coffee later or going without. It can save you the extra trip back when you realize you need that paper you left on the table. These incidents work if someone is still home, but you can save you money if you realize the outside light will be on all day and you wouldn't have noticed it if you didn't look back. It's hard when you have a puppy dog looking back at you in the window, wishing you weren't leaving, but take that one more glance.

I know the phrase, "go and never look back" is not intended in this way, but even in it's original meaning, I don't agree. Yes, we should not dwell on the past, but there is knowledge from history. Learn what went wrong and what went right. There is good and bad in almost everything. After your one look, don't linger, move forward. You don't want to be late for the new adventures waiting to for you.

Then there's the "you can never go home again". How sad is that? But how true it is too. Home changes once you leave. You can't expect it to be just as you never left it. Time does not stand still at home, though we often wish it did to have the familiar sanctuary always waiting for us. However, you CAN go home again, it will just be different as you too will be for having grown and changed from life experiences. There will be familiarities at home that will still comfort you so never say never--you should always look back once and you can always go home again, just expect it to be different.