Please help with the understanding of the sentence within the passage.
Sometimes I still wondered what my life could have looked like if I’d done things differently. If I had taken all my dad’s advice when I was younger and been more responsible with my money. It’s the same question I’ve asked about all my consumption tendencies, especially my drinking habits. What could life have looked like if I hadn’t fallen into those traps? But then I remember I had to make those mistakes and learn those lessons in order to become the person I am today. That doesn’t mean my parents’ energy was wasted. If anything, the reason I was able to come to many of these conclusions in my 20s was probably because of everything they’d taught me growing up.

Q: What is "If anything, the reason I was able to come to many of these conclusions in my 20s was probably because of everything they’d taught me growing up.'?

Question

Please help with the understanding of the sentence within the passage.
Sometimes I still wondered what my life could have looked like if I’d done things differently. If I had taken all my dad’s advice when I was younger and been more responsible with my money. It’s the same question I’ve asked about all my consumption tendencies, especially my drinking habits. What could life have looked like if I hadn’t fallen into those traps? But then I remember I had to make those mistakes and learn those lessons in order to become the person I am today. That doesn’t mean my parents’ energy was wasted. If anything, the reason I was able to come to many of these conclusions in my 20s was probably because of everything they’d taught me growing up.

Q: What is "If anything, the reason I was able to come to many of these conclusions in my 20s was probably because of everything they’d taught me growing up.'?

Answer

"If anything" means "On the contrary," or "quite the opposite."

The writer's parents tried to give him advice. If he'd followed their advice, he wouldn't have made mistakes. He didn't follow their advice. He made mistakes anyway. He learned from his own mistakes.

He says that he had to make the mistakes himself, and had to learn from them himself. Does this mean the parents' advice was wasted? He says no, it was not wasted. It didn't stop him from making mistakes, but it helped him learn from and correct his mistakes.

Answer

If anything = it may be the case. He's suggesting that it was because of his parents that he is wiser about his ways now.
It may be that all of the things his parents taught him allowed him to be more wise in his 20s.

Answer

In the sentence above, "if anything" = "Actually".

The reason he/she can identify the bad decisions is that his/her parents taught the meaning of responsibility.

Answers · 5

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