Oops! Can I Get a Re-do?

A 5-minute game to rewind time and reimagine a better outcome

Welcome, Brave One. We’re here to follow our hearts in a world running on fear. If like me, you’ve ever wished for an Undo button in real life, today’s 5-minute practice (jump below) is for us. First, a brief message for our sponsor, Mama Earth, and the porpoises of the Salish Sea:

To err is human. To reflect, and forgive, is Divine.

It’s 8 am on our anniversary. We agreed to celebrate 31 years of wedded bliss 🤣 with friends an hour’s drive away, but our plan doesn’t feel right. I bravely speak my heart. My long-suffering sweetheart winces; I’ve been changing my mind for three decades.

Around 11, he says, “Ok, let’s cancel.” It ain’t easy for him to pivot (that’s true love, friends). After hours of back-and-forth, we delight in a sunset swim and a lovely, local dinner & movie date. 🙌🏽 We even rewrite our vows from a new perspective. Worth it!

For me, our frequent disagreements confusions are growth opportunities. Can I communicate more skillfully? Can I navigate my quirks (ADHD?) to choose more mindfully? At our swim, my intuition reveals how. Ask the Queen, my Inner Authority.

Drawing of my Inner Queen for The Sketchbook Project

The Queen is the boss of all my inner child parts.¹ On reflection, I see that my lil’ people pleaser, Miss Goody Girl, agreed to my partner’s choice for our anniversary. But if I deny my truth to ‘go along’ with others, and don’t invite my Inner Authority to weigh in, hidden resentments or unforeseen messes can poison any date.

Miss Goody Girl has led me into much worse Shit-u-ations.

In 1975, I said yes to a stranger’s offer to ride in his pale blue van instead of waiting for a bus. I had to leap out of the van naked on the highway to save my skin (which got extremely scraped up). What if I could rewind time and do it differently? I’d ask my Inner Authority before I got in that van. She knew it wouldn’t turn out well.

What moments would you like to rewind?

It felt brave to speak my uncomfortable truth so we could rewind our plans and create a beautiful, win-win anniversary. I bet you’ve made a few tiny messes that you wish had taken a different course. Try today’s imagination game to travel back in time and change it up. See you in the comments 💗

Today’s 5-minute game: The Rewind Remote

From my deck, HeartsQuest: Creative Tools to Navigate Change

May this 5-minute game show you new options for epic fail moments! This video features my ridiculous alter-ego Queen Poopicina sharing the potty-mouth, ‘Holy Sh*t’ 💩 version of the tool, with her spontaneous song. Or follow the steps below.

The Rewind Remote: Oops! Can I get a re-do?

• BREATHE deeply. Soften shoulders and jaw.

• CONSIDER a situation when you did or said something that didn’t work out very well.

• IMAGINE holding a remote control that rewinds your life back in time. Feel its weight; notice its shape, controls, buttons.

• CLICK to rewind back to the moment just before the event you regret. Notice details of the place, the atmosphere, the people.

• ENVISION making another choice, to create a better outcome. What do you say or do?

• REFLECT when done: “Now, I see how...”

Creative Prompts to Imagine New Outcomes

• EXPLORE: Journal about the story you revisited. Or tell someone who’s involved. Be brave. Do the thing you wish had happened.

• CREATE: Draw a simple cartoon or act out the new story. Show any fresh outcomes.

• MANIFEST: This week, notice when things feel ‘off.’ Use Rewind to clarify your true intent, then share it. “I wished I’d said... instead.”

🗣️ Your turn: Wanna change reality?

1. Made any human blunders lately? Share.

2. Do you love a good Time Travel story? Tell us why…

3. What’s one thing you would go back and change if you could?

Thanks for Rewinding Time 💝 It’s brave to acknowledge your foibles! And share what you really want instead. When you like, comment, subscribe, or share with someone who’s had a rough go lately, you’re helping more Mostly Brave folx find us.

More to come,

As Brave Creatives, we face Monkeys of Fear when we share our voices. 🙉🙊🙈 So let’s grow more courage, compassion, and connections here. My work has appeared in Time Magazine, feature films and television, newspapers, YA fantasy novels, and on stages. My creative tools are used in therapy offices and bathrooms across the USA 💩 More at HeartsQuest.com.💗

1. Parts Work, such as Internal Family Systems, is a massively brave, compassionate way to melt old, unconscious fears. So we can be more Brave and Creative in our daily lives.