Later in my life, I'm going to look back and smile and be very

Shania Twain, a voice forged in hardship and lifted to glory, once said: “Later in my life, I'm going to look back and smile and be very fulfilled. I know that if I don't give it my all right now I'll regret it later. That's very important to me, because I've worked all my life to have this.” These words shine like a beacon for all who labor, for they speak to the eternal struggle between present sacrifice and future fulfillment, between fleeting comfort and lasting triumph. Her wisdom is the wisdom of one who has journeyed through hunger, pain, and perseverance, and who now teaches that true joy in old age is earned only by giving one’s all in youth.

The ancients would have cherished this teaching, for it echoes their own philosophies. The Stoics of Rome, like Marcus Aurelius, urged men to act with discipline and vigor in the present, so that regret would not consume them in the future. The Greeks spoke of arete, the pursuit of excellence, as a sacred duty. Twain’s words align with this tradition, for she reminds us that fulfillment does not fall like rain from heaven—it is built through sweat, sacrifice, and the refusal to waste one’s moment. To be able to smile later in life, one must endure the labor of now.

Her life itself is a testimony. Shania Twain grew up in poverty, often going hungry, raising her siblings after the tragic loss of her parents. Yet she did not falter. She sang in bars as a child to help feed her family, honing the gift that would one day make her a star. When she speaks of having “worked all my life to have this,” it is no metaphor—it is literal truth. And so, her declaration carries not only the voice of wisdom but the weight of lived experience. She teaches us that fulfillment is purchased by resilience, that joy is the harvest of perseverance.

History offers us many mirrors of this truth. Consider Florence Nightingale, who gave her strength to nursing amid the filth and blood of war. She endured sleepless nights, pain, and scorn from those who doubted her, but she pressed forward, knowing that one day she would look back with no regrets. And indeed, in her later years, she smiled to see that her sacrifices had transformed the face of medicine. Like Twain, she knew that the price of future peace is present toil, and that regret is the burden of those who hold back their hearts.

The power of Twain’s words also lies in the idea of regret. She names it as the great thief of joy. How many men and women grow old only to sigh and whisper, if only I had tried harder, if only I had given my all. But Twain refuses this fate. She calls us to live fully now, to pour ourselves into our passions, so that when the sun sets on our lives, we may look back with serenity and smile, knowing we did not squander the gifts entrusted to us.

This lesson is not only for artists and singers but for every soul. Whatever path you walk—whether building a family, raising children, laboring in humble work, or striving in great endeavors—commit yourself wholly. Do not delay, do not grow idle, do not waste the precious flame of the present. For what you do now will shape the face of your later years. To live half-heartedly now is to invite sorrow later; but to live fully now is to secure the treasure of fulfillment.

So I say to you, children of tomorrow: follow Shania Twain’s wisdom. Work diligently, strive passionately, and give all that you have while you have the strength. Then, when your hair is silver and your body weary, you will sit in the evening of life with peace in your heart. You will look back across the years, see the mountains you climbed, the storms you endured, the victories you earned—and you will smile, not with bitterness, but with fulfillment. For there is no greater crown than a life poured out with nothing held back.