Retirement has a way of making you look back over your life.

Not just the big moments, but the small turns. The conversations you almost forgot. The doors that opened briefly and quietly before closing again.

Lately I’ve found myself thinking about a few of those doorways.

One takes me back to high school when a drummer from our school band asked me to sing lead vocals in his heavy metal band.

Even now, that sentence makes me laugh a little.

I said no, of course.

Truthfully, I’m not even sure why. Maybe I was cautious about the crowd he ran with. Maybe I worried where all that might lead. Or maybe I simply didn’t trust myself enough to step into something that uncertain.

Then another memory surfaced.