Mary Ann Evans was not a particularly attractive child when she was born in 1819 in England. As she grew older, people thought she would have few chances at marriage; poor child, they said. But Mary Ann’s father saw beyond exterior features, recognized her intellectual potential and made books and learning available for his daughter. It paid off. You will recognize Mary Ann’s pen name, George Eliot, and remember that many of her novels rank with the very best: Silas Marner, Middlemarch, The Mill and the Floss, and many more. Thanks to her father, Mary Ann got a second chance at life, and she lived her life to the fullest. And that’s the point: second chances have saved lots of lives and relationships. You know anything about second chances? For yourself or for someone else?
Eliot is quoted in several places with these words: “It’s never too late to be what you might have been.” She knew what she was talking about. Here’s a reflection on that quotation…if the shoe fits…
Second Chances
If I could only go back in time!
The changes I would make to the rhythm and rhyme
of life as it has turned out to be.
I would be, I’m sure, a different me.
I missed my chance a long time ago.
I settled for less than I feel or know.
And I’ve paid the price ever since then;
but it’s too late now to begin again.
Unless, of course, I can summon the will
to make some changes and see if still
I have the courage to redo the past,
to become what I’ve always dreamed…at last!
I seek not the headlines, fortune or fame.
I just want to be what my heart still claims.
In my soul, I know that I can be
a brand new version of the usual me.
Dare I try? Shall I see if there’s a life out there
for a new, improved me?
Blessing to you in this good day. May one of those blessings be a second chance.
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