This comfort

I've written about 10 posts since the last one; trouble is, they've all been in my head, while I was driving or otherwise away from the computer! Too bad I don't have a personal assistant to take dictation at my whim. I wonder what that would be like!
The other problem is that I have so much going on in my mind, that it is hard to focus it. I wish I could distill my thoughts, and somehow writing them down does soothe the thought beast for a while.
I just finished a book, the title of which I don't exactly recall, but it was a collection of essays compiled by Charles Grodin. All sorts of famous and semi-famous people wrote about their biggest mistake and what they learned from it. By and large, the major themes involved making sure your loved ones know that you love them, being true to yourself, and knowing that in fact there are no mistakes (in the sense that everything can be a learning experience and everything contributes to your growth, if you allow it). Perhaps my favorite essay was the last one in the book. Paul Newman writes that he is still making the same mistakes he made 50 years ago, which means he is not surprised when he does it again, but strangely comforted. Made me think about how we might draw a perverse comfort from making the same mistakes over and over.