Regret Poems

Regret Poems

Poems About Regret, Remorse and Sorrow

Regret can make us feel an unrelenting bitterness like no other emotion. While regret can help us to avoid repeating a mistake, if left uncontrolled it can wreak havoc on a person. Hours, days, or weeks spent feeling regret for a past mistake is usually counterproductive. It can impede us from moving on with our life and letting go of the past. So how can someone dealing with regret cope? Many find that reading and writing poems that deal with their feelings allows them to let go once and for all.

20 Poems about Letting Go Of Past Mistakes

1 - 20 of 20

  1. 1. The Sin Of Omission

    "The Sin of Omission" by Margaret E. Sangster is a poignant reflection on the regrets that stem from missed opportunities for kindness and compassion. Through the use of evocative language and emotional imagery, the poem emphasizes the significance of actions not taken. With a consistent rhyme scheme and rhythmic flow, Sangster effectively conveys the weight of these omitted gestures, encouraging readers to consider the impact of their choices on both themselves and others.

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    • By Margaret E. Sangster

    It isn't the thing you do, dear,
    It's the thing you leave undone
    That gives you a bit of a heartache
    At the setting of the sun.

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  3. 2. It Might Have Been

    Ella Wheeler Wilcox (1850-1919) uses this poem to show that people have the power to make their own destiny. Most of the stanzas start with “We will (be/do/climb),” which brings attention to the belief that we will each become what we set out to become. This poem is made up of quatrains (four-line stanzas) that follow the ABAB rhyme scheme. Although Ella Wheeler Wilcox was born to poor family and received many rejection letters for her poetry, she remained optimistic and kept working hard for what she wanted.

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    We will be what we could be. Do not say,
    "It might have been, had not or that, or this."
    No fate can keep us from the chosen way;
    He only might who is.

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  5. 3. You Will Regret

    My best friend fell in love for the first time in her life with a person she thought was her soul mate. He kept playing games and wasn't honest with her about how he felt. It broke her heart, and I wrote this poem to represent how she felt.

    • By Shahinaz Soliman
    • Published by Family Friend Poems September 2016 with permission of the Author.

    You will regret
    That you made me cry,
    That you didn't see the love in my eye,
    That you failed my heart and didn't even try.

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    I met someone on social media, and from the get-go I fell deeply in love. After a few days of endless conversations and video calls, I learned that it took just one obstacle for him to leave...

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  6. 4. Words Unsaid

    "Words Unsaid" is a poem that expresses a heart full of regrets with the feelings it hid for a long time. It's a poem about words unspoken and feelings that were never shown. In love, one should gamble everything - even pride. However, there are times in our lives that realization comes when all the chances were gone. And you can do nothing but to feel how your whole soul is being torn up.

    Regretting the moments I took for granted,
    Moments when I was eaten by pride and hatred.
    What if I had told you what I feel?
    Would it change my life's wheel?

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    • Stories 2
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    When I read the poems published here, my raw wound of rejected love was prodded to pain, again. I met a man in a Facebook group. I was attracted to him as if there was no other man in the...

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  7. 5. Alone In My Head

    When I wrote this my husband and I had been going through a hard time. I had received emails from another woman claiming to be with my husband. As I was distancing myself from my husband to prepare for the worst, I started having feelings for my best friend. He called me his muse, his soul mate. As the fighting got worse between my husband and I, the bond between my best friend and I grew stronger and then it happened. As soon as it was over, he told me it meant nothing. My heart broke again.

    • By M
    • Published by Family Friend Poems May 2011 with permission of the Author.

    Alone in my head,
    I'm feeling so low.
    You won't understand,
    No one can know.

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    Beautiful poem! I loved the way it's presented with hints of unspoken events.

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  8. 6. My Room, Dark Black

    I sit in my room and all of this happens...but the thing is when someone calls me I'll force myself to stop and talk back with a normal tone, and if they want to see me, I wipe my tears and say, "Hold on. I'm changing."

    • By Anonymous
    • Published by Family Friend Poems August 2012 with permission of the Author.

    my room, dark black
    my nightmares come back
    my past, won't leave me
    I need someone to free me

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    • Stories 1
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    • Rating 4.27
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    I can relate to this poem a lot. My best friend killed himself last year in December, and I regret not being a better friend because I feel like I could have saved him if I had tried hard...

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  9. 7. The Window

    My mom and dad were divorced when I was two. I saw my mom maybe 12 times in my life. I never knew why the divorce happened. Then one day I got a phone call from my dad saying he was coming to pick me up. My dad told me she had always been a bad druggie and he was scared for me. That's what had killed her. The last year of her life I didn't call her because she didn't call me. I only sent her one card, which said why haven't you called? I can see her dying thinking her son didn't care. I hate what I did and regret it so much...

    • By Jake Tipton
    • Published by Family Friend Poems January 2009 with permission of the Author.

    I look out the window and what do I see?
    Except for a better version of me?
    He did the right where I did the wrong
    So, I'm the one that wrote this song

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    • Stories 31
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    • Rating 4.60
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    My dad left me all alone and I never see him at all. People say that divorce is hard and they have no possible idea.

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  10. 8. If I Could Go Back

    This poem is about someone having lost what they used to be, tried to change for someone else, and now wishing they could go back and change it. Redo their whole life and never stray from the track in life that they were on before they were consumed with hatred and self loathing.

    • By Shianne
    • Published by Family Friend Poems January 2017 with permission of the Author.

    For every time that I broke down
    There was a fake smile to cover the frown
    I hid behind lies when things got tough
    Forced myself to think it was enough

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    • Rating 4.54
  11. 9. Another Day

    Hi, I'm Kirsty. I'm 32 and live in Scotland. I wrote this poem after my gran passed away suddenly. This poem expresses how I felt and how guilt can play a big part during grief and how you should appreciate the people you love while you still can.

    • By Kirsty Kennedy
    • Published by Family Friend Poems May 2019 with permission of the Author.

    Life gets very busy.
    Things get in the way.
    Do I have time to visit?
    I'll go another day.

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    I turned 67 this year and have been searching for old friends online. I went to college in a city 1500 miles away. It was probably the best time of my life. I have now looked for four friends...

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  12. 10. Regret

    I wrote this poem for my cousin, who was raped when she was 15. She's now 27 and married with two kids and is very happy.

    • By Moira Thompson
    • Published by Family Friend Poems May 2012 with permission of the Author.

    You told me that you loved me
    And would never break my heart
    You said that it was fun
    That it wouldn't hurt.

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    • Stories 2
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    • Rating 4.51
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    I was raped, and he took my v-card. I was never the same. It broke me, and I'm still trying to repair.

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  13. 11. Regrets In Growing Old

    This poem is about growing old, dealing with regrets and how I would have lived my life if I had a second chance

    The hardest part of getting old,
    Is dealing with regrets,
    Accepting there's no going back.
    One chance is all I get.

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    I'm alone too, and it's mostly my own fault. I hate it, but it's trust. Grasping for youth at 54 is not how it should be.

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  14. 12. When Time Runs Out

    When people I have loved in my life die, I am often left with a deep feeling of regret and wishing that I had done and said things differently. If I follow what this poem says, it seems to really help me.

    • By Alice Wyndham
    • Published by Family Friend Poems June 2011 with permission of the Author.

    When time runs out and your heart needs to say so much more
    But the heart that should hear it is gone now forever
    And you are left with a raw nagging sore,

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    • Stories 2
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    I lost my daughter my first born child just 10 days ago. To an addiction she tried so long to fight she hated what it did to her, in the end the demon prevailed and she died from an overdose....

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  15. 13. Death, My Loyal Friend

    When we are continuously waiting for the next thing in life to happen, we miss the most vital and beautiful parts of life.

    • By Emilee C. Wells
    • Published by Family Friend Poems February 2016 with permission of the Author.

    When I was born, I was dying for warmth,
    And as I grew, I was dying again.
    Dying for affection, for love.
    I was dying simply for a friend.

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    • Stories 1
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    • Rating 4.33
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    I like how this poem perfectly depicts how life is and how everyone is constantly wanting more and never truly happy with what they have. Social media has taken over the life of many and no...

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  16. 14. Stuck In The Past

    Old memories can be such a burden.

    • By Remaining Anonymous
    • Published by Family Friend Poems September 2008 with permission of the Author.

    Old memories, old actions, old regrets,
    It seems someone never forgets,
    They seem to return over and over again,
    When will they disappear,

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    • Rating 4.26
  17. 15. Regret And Pain

    This poem is about something that happened which made my mum lose trust in me, and I went through a rough patch where I regretted what happened so badly I wanted to turn back time so I'd never been here.

    • By Nikita
    • Published by Family Friend Poems September 2011 with permission of the Author.

    Here I am,
    Stumbling down the street
    The rain's pouring down
    I'm staring at my feet

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    • Stories 3
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    • Favorited 58
    • Votes 380
    • Rating 4.24
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    Hi, I'm sorry about your pain. I know how you feel. I have done what you have done. I have cut myself so much, but I did it to get attention from people. I never had friends when I was...

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  18. 16. Choices

    Life's choices changes our lives.

    • By Rueth
    • Published by Family Friend Poems September 2009 with permission of the Author.

    Why did I decide to change the course of my life?
    I was impatient and naive that I let people take advantage of me.
    My life has turned up side down, and now it is crashing down.
    I thought I could find love and hold it, blindly I went for it

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    • Stories 4
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    • Votes 526
    • Rating 4.23
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    This was the poem I needed to read! I am currently in a similar state. I cheated on my boyfriend (who I was with for 3 years) with my close guy friend. Figured he only enjoyed my company...

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  19. 17. Who Do You Do?

    A poem about regretting a decision.

    • By Katrina
    • Published by Family Friend Poems August 2009 with permission of the Author.

    I'm crying my eyes out,
    But no one can see,
    Because it's deep,
    Deep inside of me.

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    • Stories 0
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    • Favorited 69
    • Votes 354
    • Rating 4.21
  20. 18. Secrets

    This is a poem about a girl who wasn't committed at the start and cheated, after she realized she was actually in love, she realized the lie she has to carry.

    • By Nicole
    • Published by Family Friend Poems June 2008 with permission of the Author.

    do your secrets rip and roar?
    do they tear at you with open claws?
    do your secrets dig down deep?
    do the make you want to speak?

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    • Stories 0
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    • Rating 4.16
  21. 19. An Unpredictable Life

    This poem is about my life, from the age of 8, cooking, cleaning, washing, etc. to look after my invalid relatives. Anyone who has dedicated their life to looking after family and providing love and all the needs can relate to my poem. And anyone who is doing so now, please also think about your own needs, goals, and don't let them go. One day it may be too late. Love and caring is great, but you also have to be kind to yourself as well.

    I sit here now in darkness, living on my own,
    A life of existence, white walls, my home
    With rooms that sometimes resonated with laughter
    Saw also tears of much sadness, pain, suffering, and anger.

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    • Rating 4.14
  22. 20. Is It To Late Or Is There Still Time?

    I fell in love with my best friend, and when I told him how I felt, he told me I wasn't ready for him and urged me to go out with other guys. When I went out, I realized that my heart wouldn't allow me to, but it was already too late. I hurt him because he didn't expect me to give up on him that easily. But I want to fight for him, and that is what I have been doing.

    • By Faith Mendez
    • Published by Family Friend Poems December 2008 with permission of the Author.

    If he is ready to date
    I have no chance
    I would already be too late
    For there to be romance

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    • Stories 1
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    • Favorited 19
    • Votes 186
    • Rating 4.12
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    I know how it feels. Your poem made me cry. Thank you. I am trying to rekindle a flame with my wife. We have been together for 13 years and have 5 beautiful, smart kids. I love to write; it...

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