ThaBenMan post=18.70898.707679 said:
Saskwach post=18.70898.707639 said:
Shivari post=18.70898.707618 said:
At his point though I don't have any major mistakes that I would change though. Yeah I would change a few minor things here and there and pretty much jump 10 grades in school (which could be cool in a way.) But if that one memory could go away, my life in general would improve. So for me, yes that memory would be what I'd want to change.
And PurpleRain, it's not an event like getting my arm cut off or something, it's something that truly scarred me so much that I'm horribly shy now. If that memory was still there it wouldn't matter if that event didn't happen in my retry, because it's still in my mind.
Now we get into some
weird metaphysics, psychology, and philosophy. Would reliving that moment and guiding it to a happier outcome heal that scar? Maybe, but who knows? For many emotional scars I think it would work since the damage is not so much that it happened but that this hypothetical person feels they could have changed how things went, and become a happier person. For those people, simply seeing that it
was possible would be a boon. Retroactively making it happen would be out of this world.
This is what I was thinking as well - I think it would be incredibly therapeutic to relive a tramautic event, but have the knowledge and ability to confront it and change the outcome for the better. So, after thinking about it, I think that yes, I would go back if I could. All the other stuff would be great as well - I could tell myself: "Lay off the butter, man." and I wouldn't be the fatass I am today.
But that remark about having to wait 10 years for Fallout 3 certainly gave me pause...
Both very valid points, but I have been wondering something. Wouldn't changing anything in your past change who you are now, not only pertaining to the event, if not a lot of things around you?
Say someone was crippled in an accident. They lost the use of their legs. This caused a lot of emotional scarring to go along with the disability. As a result of this, the person became anti-social and a shut-in. They rarely left the house, too angry at the world. Eventually they decided to go back to school. Their classes helped them focus on something other than their condition. They became an incredible student. They studied pretty much all the time, because it helped them escape from their reality. Applying themselves to their education gave them very distinct, achievable goals. Said person went on to become a great scientist of some kind, doing many great things for the scientific community.
Rewind 15 or so years. The person is given a chance to go back to before the accident, to change what happened. They do. They are incredibly happy. They have their legs back! The person becomes very social and very friendly, joining many clubs such as speech, and working on the school newspaper. They are not an exceptional student, but they get good grades. The person ends up in a fairly good college and gets a degree in journalism. They get hired by a local news station, and quickly rise to the top. Their degree of honesty combined with their disarming personality gets them the best interviews and the top stories. People like talking to this person and the public likes listening to their reports. They tell stories that aren't spun in any way, but still are exciting to hear. The person goes on to win several awards and is later accredited with reforming the way people get the news.
Both of these are stories of success, obviously, but my point remains. One moment can change your life, but that one one moment also defines who you are. Without your current experiences, who knows who you would have been?
