If Only...

If only… si solo… se apenas… si seulement… wenn nur… om bara… hvis bare… and the list goes on, if only seems to exist in every language.

If only I had been 6’ tall in 8th grade, if only I had a little league coach actually coach me instead of benching me at the end of 1st inning, if only I was not raised in a cult, if only I have lived on campus as a college freshman, if only *I _____, if only I win the *Publishers Clearing House and $10,000 a week for life.

*…had not tripped on that damn carpet, had encouraged Norma to attend college after high school, had not won that Christmas castle, had published sooner, been Rick’s best man, had taken better care of my teeth, learned how to learn, spent time with my grandfather refinishing furniture, had been a principal, finished my Ph D, not started this list.

Yes, past the 100 word limit a paragraph ago, but should I win, the Grand Prize will add to the list, if only I had won thirty years ago.

My next 100 word story, The Cup, is Half Empty.