When someone asks a hypothetical such as, "What do you think it'd be like if you were born 100 years ago?" my mind immediately goes in a weird direction. How would that even work? I wonder. Presumably, you have the same parents, or you could be a very different person and then there'd be no point to the prompt. And presumably, you have the same grandparents or else your parents (and you) could be very different people. And presumably, you have the same great-grandparents . . . So which ancestors do you delete, and how do you know it won't affect your development as a human being? Do you even get to make that decision? Where do those 100 years come from?
"It'd suck to not have modern medicine," I manage.
I know it's not obvious, but I promise, I'm technically writing this blog post in response to a class prompt. Specifically, this one: Do you wish you could return to a moment in your past? I gave some proper answers, of course. But I also spent way too many words speculating about the prompt's scenario. First, something similar to the above example:
I like thinking this way. I find it's fun. But I know I can be too literal and at the same time too speculative. Sometimes I do this while watching a movie and my mom will tell me not to be so technical about it. And yeah, sometimes I really shouldn't be. Sometimes, I think that the way I approach conversations ruins or disrupts them. I mean, obviously, if you're trying to have a nice conversation about your good memories, the last thing you need is me saying, "But would you really go back to the past tho."
But other times I like to let these thoughts grow. They may not be the best for every occasion but they're mine and I think they can be entertaining. (I'm hoping you did too, to read this far.)
It's really all about social skills. Knowing how much to say - when to blurt your thoughts, when not to (no matter how interesting you think they are) - those are tough skills to learn but important ones. I know some people are really good at it. Hopefully, I've gotten better at it too.
***
I'm about 100 words short. Any ideas on where I can say more?
"It'd suck to not have modern medicine," I manage.
I know it's not obvious, but I promise, I'm technically writing this blog post in response to a class prompt. Specifically, this one: Do you wish you could return to a moment in your past? I gave some proper answers, of course. But I also spent way too many words speculating about the prompt's scenario. First, something similar to the above example:
I’m probably approaching this prompt way too literally, fixating on the mechanics of the ‘return’ part way more than the ‘moment’ part. As soon as I saw the prompt I started to wonder: would I stay in that moment or would I come back to the present? Would I retain my older memories or would I completely revert? If the former, could I change the future with my behavior?Then I started questioning the entire prompt itself:
But now I’m wondering how many people wish they could return to a moment in their past versus how many people would actually do it. I expect more talk than walk. The only people who would give up their present for the past are people who are miserable with their current life. Even if it’s not a permanent thing, it’s a bit scary, isn’t it? Happy memories are often rose-colored, or happened organically. Living through the same moment a second time might take away its magic. Overall I’d like to think that, in general, people change for the better over the years. I wouldn’t want to give that up just to return to the past.
I like thinking this way. I find it's fun. But I know I can be too literal and at the same time too speculative. Sometimes I do this while watching a movie and my mom will tell me not to be so technical about it. And yeah, sometimes I really shouldn't be. Sometimes, I think that the way I approach conversations ruins or disrupts them. I mean, obviously, if you're trying to have a nice conversation about your good memories, the last thing you need is me saying, "But would you really go back to the past tho."
But other times I like to let these thoughts grow. They may not be the best for every occasion but they're mine and I think they can be entertaining. (I'm hoping you did too, to read this far.)
It's really all about social skills. Knowing how much to say - when to blurt your thoughts, when not to (no matter how interesting you think they are) - those are tough skills to learn but important ones. I know some people are really good at it. Hopefully, I've gotten better at it too.
***
I'm about 100 words short. Any ideas on where I can say more?
I like how you made this prompt your own. I could hear your voice through your inner dialogue, and it was entertaining to read.
ReplyDeleteTo make it longer, maybe you could offer your opinion on the prompt. While I was reading, I was starting to really want a resolution and to know after the speculation, whether you would return to a moment in your past and which it would be. Maybe you could explicate, in a similar literal style, one or some of the “proper” responses you mentioned. It’s just an idea, that might take it in a different direction than what you were going for. Overall, I loved your post!
This is a really creative post. I like how you interpreted the prompt in a different way because your essay is really unique. I agree with Sarah that you could offer your opinion to the prompt at the end. However, if you want to stay true to the rest of what you were writing you could explain what moment you would want to go back to and why and then give some literal opinions on what you think would happen if you went back to this time. This way I think you could give your essay a little bit more context.
ReplyDeleteNice job!