Regret happens, yet it never has to be the end of your story. You have much better things to do now.
The more you get out ahead of what must be done, the less taxing the whole thing becomes on your life.
Yes, life has its troubles. Yet even those troubles help to make the overwhelming goodness of life that much more worth living.
Keep yourself well connected to the miracle and reality of being. That is the fertile territory where you live your best life.
Assumptions solidly based on experience and wisdom can be highly useful. They can also be decidedly wrong.
The meaning is in the investment of your time and attention. No shortcut exists to a life of meaning and fulfillment.