If You Could Go Back in Time and Change a Moment in Your Past, What Would That Be and Why?

[Solivagant]

Almost ten years ago, when I was a teenager, I tried to take my own life. I was obviously going through a very difficult time. I would change that moment because it made my family members, especially my parents, suffer greatly. I wish that I could have been strong enough to have dealt with my problems in a positive manner.

[mollyhousemouse]

@Solivagant i'm sorry that you had that experience

 

for me, who i am now is built on what i was, what i did, what i didn't do

i'm happy with who i am now, and it took a LOONNGG time for me to be able to say that

so, changing a moment from my past, not sure that i would

[MacGreg]

@Solivagant I'm sorry you went through that. But I imagine the experience made you a stronger person. I wouldn't travel back in time to change anything. Like molly, all of my choices, good and bad, make up the fabric of who I am. Maybe the one event I wish I'd handled differently is my father's passing. We were estranged for a long time, and when my brother informed me that he was dying, I didn't drop what I was doing to go see him. Hard to say if I would have been better off saying goodbye to him, but it still nags at me that I'll never know now. 

[Parker Owens]

@Solivagant I grieve for the pain you felt. I am glad you are here to speak of it, as it may help another brother or sister who feels that pain, too. There are many moments I wish I had done better or differently - my teenage years were a disaster - but I cannot undo those knots that bind me now into who I am. 

[Defiance19]

I too, am sorry you’ve had that experience.

 

There are things I might have done differently, but I would not not change my past because I kind of like how I turned out, and I think all my experiences shaped that. Now, if I had the power to erase a memory of a specific event, that I’d do in a heartbeat because it triggers the part of me I dislike the most. 

[Mikiesboy]

I would have listened to my brother and not told my dad i was gay. Though had i not would i be who I am? Better who i am no matter the price i paid.

[Brayon]

There's a list of stuff I would change, too many to decide on one. Yeah, they made me who I am, but I could do without a few of them. There's one huge one, and that was falling in love with the wrong person.

[Mancunian]

We all have moments in our past that we would change if it were possible, but we all have to come to terms with the fact that it is not possible. So when we look back on those moments we need to look for the positives that can come out of it, however tenuous they may be. It's those positives, no matter how insignificant they may seem, that make us who we are today, and give us the opportunity to influence our futures. Reflect without regret, forgive ourselves for our pasts, and make tomorrow the start of a brighter future for us and our loved ones. I wish everyone the best and a bright and happy future.

[Jdonley75]

I have a lot of regrets.  One really big one.  Had I known how abusive he was (emotionally more than physically) I would have never met him after work for coffee and playing cards.  It was my biggest mistake to get involved with him.  Had it not been for him, I know my life would have been a lot better.

 

I know a lot of people say that all the events of your past make you the person you are today but with him, there was no good found there.  I would be a much happier and more trusting person if I had never met him.

[Mikiesboy]

9 minutes ago, Jdonley75 said:

I have a lot of regrets.  One really big one.  Had I known how abusive he was (emotionally more than physically) I would have never met him after work for coffee and playing cards.  It was my biggest mistake to get involved with him.  Had it not been for him, I know my life would have been a lot better.

 

I know a lot of people say that all the events of your past make you the person you are today but with him, there was no good found there.  I would be a much happier and more trusting person if I had never met him.

in this case i think you're right ... he took something from you, something important and that's wrong 

[Former Member]

I sometimes wish I hadn’t waited until my mid-20s to Come Out, but on the other hand, if I had become sexually active in my late teens like many others, I might have become one of the thousands who were infected before anyone knew about HIV/AIDS and how it was transmitted…

 

Edited November 19, 2018 by Former Member

[Mikiesboy]

17 minutes ago, droughtquake said:

I sometimes wish I hadn’t waited until my mid-20s to Come Out, but on the other hand, if I had become sexually active in my late teens like many others, I might have become one of the thousands who were infected before anyone knew about HIV/AIDS and how it was transmitted…

 

yeah, trust me.. you dont want hiv  xoxo

[Former Member]

9 minutes ago, Mikiesboy said:

yeah, trust me.. you dont want hiv  xoxo

I lived through the worst days and saw people in the AIDS Ward at Alameda County’s Highland Hospital in the late ‘80s. I also have and have had several friends with AIDS. I did volunteer work for a couple years. I don’t know what it’s like personally and, no offense, I don’t want that to change.  ;–)

[TetRefine]

I'd tell my early 20s self to have more of a life focus. Making and starting a plan then would have been a whole lot easier then it is now. 

Edited November 19, 2018 by TetRefine

[Mikiesboy]

1 minute ago, droughtquake said:

I lived through the worst days and saw people in the AIDS Ward at Alameda County’s Highland Hospital in the late ‘80s. I also have and have had several friends with AIDS. I did volunteer work for a couple years. I don’t know what it’s like personally and, no offense, I don’t want that to change.  ;–)

no offense to me, dq ... i dont want anyone else to get it  xo

[Jason Rimbaud]

I would have stayed straight edge in my twenties...

 

[methodwriter85]

7 hours ago, TetRefine said:

I'd tell my young 20s self to have more of a life focus. Making and starting a plan then would have been a whole lot easier then it is now. 

 

I would have told 24-year old me not to waste money on a master's degree in history, but honestly, even though it didn't lead a professional career, I feel like grad school shaped me into a better person. I didn't have to be slacker party boy when I went to IUP as opposed to my UD years, and there were a lot of things I feel like I "righted" about myself when I was a grad student.

 

If I could further back though, I'd tell my 18-year old self to just go to community college, get my grades up, and transfer into a 4-year college after instead of just going to a mediocre college before getting into UD.

 

I also probably shouldn't have hung out at so many frat parties but honestly, those memories bring a smile to my face. (Even though they didn't lead to illicit sex with straight frat boys like Nifty Archive told me they would. LOL.)

[Arpeggio]

Oh man, if only.