Looking back

Someone I know had a birthday recently. The celebration took me back twenty years to the time we met. That got me thinking about my life in the two decades that have now passed. I can see from this vantage point where the train left the tracks. At the time, I was so caught up that I couldn't see much of anything. I went all the way down to the dark and scary places that make us think about giving up. I was fortunate to have friends who didn't let me go. With help from someone very skilled at talking people off the ledge, I found my way back and there I have stayed. I wish I had done some things differently, but I don't regret the relationship that changed me forever. It ended as most passionate relationships do, with a whimper not a bang. At the time, I thought the ending of it was the worst thing that could happen, but of course it wasn't. Continuing on would have been worse. Today, I am at peace and sad to see my friend is not. Who would have thought that?