Heavy Regret

Dear Delyara, I regret one decision so much that it still changes the way I see myself. I try not to think about it, but regret is strange. It doesn’t leave when ignored. It waits. Quietly. Patiently. Then it returns in the middle of ordinary moments and reminds you that there was a version of your life that could have gone differently. I know people say, “You did the best you could with what you knew then.” Maybe. But what if that’s not comforting? What if I needed to know better? What if I should have been braver? Kinder? Stronger? There are mistakes that teach you. And there are mistakes that become part of your identity. This one feels like the second kind.