My Biggest Regret In Moving To Mexico

Published May 14, 2022

by Chuck Bolotin
I relate the experiences of my wife, dogs, and me living abroad.

You can hear profound statements in the most unlikely places.

A few years ago, when I was 61 or so, I was in a water aerobics class here in Mexico. One of my classmates was a woman a good bit older than me who told me that after building her dream home with her husband just two years ago they were selling it because, now that they were older, they realized that the house was “too much” for them. She then paused a beat, and with a tone that could best be described as equal parts intensity mixed with regret, she looked at me straight in my eyes, and said:

“We waited too long.”

This was so sad, so simple, and so meaningful that I had nothing to say.

After a few seconds, she looked at me again and repeated her unforgiving reality:

“We waited too long.”

A few years earlier, when I was in my mid-50’s I was interviewing Mike Cobb, who is an expert in living abroad. I asked him, “What is the thing people most often say to you about moving abroad?”

Mike’s answer was unequivocal, and it was immediate.

“The thing they most often say is ‘I wish I had done it sooner.’”

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