Carrie Underwood

"Lessons Learned" - Carrie Underwood

There's some things that I regret,
Some words I wish had gone unsaid,
Some starts,
That had some bitter endings,
Been some bad times I've been through,
Damage I cannot undo,
Some things,
I wish I could do all all over again,
But it don't really matter,
Life gets that much harder,
It makes you that much stronger,
Oh, some pages turned,
Some bridges burned,
But there were,
Lessons learned.

And every tear that had to fall from my eyes,
Everyday I wondered how I'd get through the night,
Every change, life has thrown me,
I'm thankful, for every break in my heart,
I'm grateful, for every scar,
Some pages turned,
Some bridges burned,
But there were lessons learned.

There's mistakes that I have made,
Some chances I just threw away,
Some roads,
I never should've taken,
Been some signs I didn't see,
Hearts that I hurt needlessly,
Some wounds,
That I wish I could have one more chance to mend,
But it don't make no difference,
The past can't be rewritten,
You get the life you're given,
Oh, some pages turned,
Some bridges burned,
But there were,
Lessons learned.

And every tear that had to fall from my eyes,
Everyday I wondered how I'd get through the night,
Every change, life has thrown me,
I'm thankful, for every break in my heart,
I'm grateful, for every scar,
Some pages turned,
Some bridges burned,
But there were lessons learned.

And all the things that break you,
Are all the things that make you strong,
You can't change the past,
Cause it's gone,
And you just gotta move on,
Because it's all,
Lessons learned.

And every tear that had to fall from my eyes,
Everyday I wondered how I'd get through the night,
Every change, life has thrown me,
I'm thankful, for every break in my heart,
I'm grateful, for every scar,
Some pages turned,
Some bridges burned,
But there were lessons learned,
Oh, some pages turned,
Some bridges burned,
But there were lessons learned,
Lessons learned.

This song came on last night while I was coaching, and I nearly broke down into tears right there.  It was one of those moments where the right words hit you at the right time.  I've been looking for the right words lately, to describe how I've been feeling about life.  Sometimes I feel like I've fallen so far behind that I will never catch up to where I am supposed to be.

For instance, if I would have done something different, would my life be easier?

Probably.

If I wouldn't have gone to grad school (or undergrad for that matter), I wouldn't be incredibly in debt.
If I would have stayed home and gone to school, I wouldn't have missed out on watching my little sister grow up.
If I hadn't done gymnastics, I wouldn't have scars, broken bones... or dreams...

Wait.

No dreams? What kind of a life would that be?

Every struggle, and every pain was worth it's weight in what I've learned because of it.

That white scar down the front of my leg made me Strong.  And the fact that it's two scars deep makes me Stronger.  The purple "swirly design" on my heel is a reminder that I have a family outside of my family should I ever need them.  And the one on top of my foot reminds me to believe in myself when there is nothing else for me to believe in.  And all of the marks on my heart that have come through loving and losing, dreaming, daring, taking chances, being scared, succeeding and failing have only prepared me to be a more compassionate and understanding person.

Life is all about lessons.  If we didn't make mistakes, we would never learn from them.  If we didn't take chances, how would we know how great life can be?  I have to turn down that ticket... to the event in LA that I was dying to go to.  Unfortunately, I can't afford the trip, but I'm planning to save enough to go next year.  Am I bummed?  Of course I am.  But I am still thrilled to have been acknowledged for my accomplishments, my struggles and for being brave enough to tell the world what I have been through.  All of that pain was worth the lesson I learned about my life; That it is far more important to do something that I love, be someone I love, and to be proud of that than to waste energy worrying about things that don't really matter.

Sure, I probably could have skipped out on all of this hard stuff had I chose another path in life.  But who knows what that would have brought me?  I don't want to know.  I want to appreciate.

Day 24: Appreciate life's little lessons.  You may not recognize them as they hit you... but if you're patient, they will always reveal themselves!

Love True-
Allison