If I Could Go Back In Time: 17 Real, Raw Answers | The Odyssey Online
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If I Could Go Back In Time: 17 Real, Raw Answers

I interviewed 17 people for answers I didn't expect.

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If I Could Go Back In Time: 17 Real, Raw Answers
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A trap queen, time spent with family, a Powerball investment, talks with younger selves, a trip to NYC, do-overs in high school, and a whole lot more.

If you thought you knew someone, you don't. It's not until you ask them what they'd change in their life that you get a mere glimpse into the human heart and what makes us yearn for more. Every single one of these answers intrigued me more into the person behind the answer. And just to make it fair, I answered the question as well. I urge you to read the answers to the age old question: If you could go back in time, in your lifetime, where and when would you go and what would you do?

1. Powerball

"I know the response is quick but I have thought about this before. I guess the decision comes down to what is most important to oneself. I'm still afraid of changing my most personal moments, so I would travel back to January 12th, 2016 and bought the winning Powerball ticket of the largest draw ever. I would then invest in nintendo stock before Pokemon go was created, Ion Geophysical Corp, Petroquest, and many others, then sell the stocks before it dropped.

I would now be rich beyond my wildest dreams, and have never have needed to attend college. I would have the freedom and resources to pursue whatever my heart desired, and never have to worry about loans, whether I will get a job, or if I will have a chance to impact the world."

2. Anxiety

"If I could go back in time, I would go to first grade when I noticed the start of my anxiety. I didn't realize that it was anxiety and just thought I would randomly feel sick every day. I had fears of throwing up at school (because it happened once) and a fear of missing the bus (because it almost happened once). It was very difficult for me because I was so young and unaware of what was really going on.

Every day at certain times of the day, I'd feel sick and I just found it a part of my routine. I didn't know that there was a way to prevent that and that it wasn't a real illness. So, if I could go back to that time, I would probably seek professional help and see a therapist. As a child, I think I would have found it easier to listen to the therapist and not read into what he/she says, like I did a couple years ago. Although therapy helped me years later, I wish I could have prevented a lot of anxiety that I thought was completely normal."

3. Father-Daughter

"So if I could go back in time I would go back to the Father Daughter dance! The reason why is because I was such a big tomboy I thought dancing with my dad was too girly for me, so I didn't dance with him at all. Every time I look back at it I regret it more and more because my dad does not dance often and went out of his way to go to that dance that I didn't even take part of. I look back at it because the next time that I'm going to dance with my dad is at my wedding. I just took that day for granted. But I learned that I shouldn't take anything for granted. What if something happened to my dad and I won't get a chance with him ever? It's the little things that count in life, even if it is just a little dance. Every time I hear the song, "I don't dance", I keep telling my dad that's gonna be our song that we dance to on my wedding dance; it fits us perfectly. As I grow up and look back at the little things that I could of done but never did, it kills me in the inside."

4. Pep-Talk

"If I could go back in time, I would take a trip back to middle school to give my younger self a much needed pep talk. Provided this wouldn't cause some terrible butterfly effect, I would tell younger me that she does not have to sacrifice her own happiness to please others. I would tell her that friends who pressure her to do things aren't real friends at all. Most importantly, I would tell her to never feel ashamed for being herself, and that what she believes are her worst qualities are actually the things that make her so special."

5. Watch TV

"If I could go back in my lifetime to any place, I would go to my grandparent's house in the spring of 2007. I wouldn't go for a party or big fancy event, but simply to sit with my grandfather, eating Werther's Original candy, and being bored out of my mind watching either the news, Jeopardy, or Judge Judy( because they were really the only things he'd watch). As a child, I never paid much mind to when he would ask me to just sit with him to watch TV, and would often make up an excuse to not stick around. I wouldn't change anything about my past, but if I had the chance to go back, for just one day, I would use it to give my grandfather one more happy moment. I'll never be able to truly explain the kind of roller coaster relationship I had with him, but when he died I remember sitting around the dinner table with my family just remembering him: his quirks, his moods, likes and dislikes, the whole kit and caboodle. Well at some point during the whole walk down memory lane, grandma looked and me and asked if I remembered watching Judge Judy with him a couple of days before he died. Of course I did! I had gotten free candy and a lazy day at my grandparents out of it, what kid wouldn't. Well she told me that when I left their house that night he went on and on about how happy it made him just to be able to sit with me. I wasn't really even talking except when I had no idea what the TV was saying and needed to ask questions, and how he got a little light back in his eyes about getting to watch his grandchildren grow up. I don't remember why I really just wanted to watch TV with him that day, but I will forever be glad that I did. So instead of going back and fixing those answers on my 3rd grade spelling test, or making friends with who I'd now know would turn into the "cool kids" later in school, I'd watch TV, just one more time before I'd never have the chance again."

6. All The Small Things

"I would go back to third grade and make sure I kept better track of the people that entered and left my life at that point, as well as have a more pronounced appreciation for my grandmother, dog and parents. It still bothers me how long it took me to realize that people aren't around forever and that its the small things you miss the most."

7. Focus

"I think that if I were to go back in time, I would go back to the beginning of my freshman year of high school. I would re-start high school with a carefree attitude and not let the actions or opinions of someone else impact me as much as they did. I would do my best to focus on myself and not let the negative energy and anxiety control me. I would live up to my full potential rather than letting myself be held back by a toxic friendship."

8. That's All, Folks

"I would go back to the play I was in when I was younger and watch myself in it, that’s all."

9. Try

"I’d go back to my freshman year and not be so down on myself all the time and try harder in school. It would probably change the outcome where I went to college and/or if I got scholarships and joined NHS."

10. Realization

"If I could go back in time I would change how I let my ex manipulate me even after we broke up. I would tell myself I am better than that and I can live without him and deserve better. I would also go back and spend more time with my family because you don’t realize how precious life is and how it can be taken away so suddenly. Now I try to spend as much time with my family as I can because I realize I will be older and have to live my own life and not be able to see them as often."

11. Nope

"I wouldn’t, out of fear of changing what I have now."

12. Inspiration and Belief

"I would go back to when both my grandfathers were alive. I would spend more time getting to know them. They both had amazing and crazy pasts. One traveled to over 80 countries and did everything imaginable. The other was an army ranger and saw some crazy classified shit. Both were outstanding men and had hearts of gold. And they always told me to get to writing a book. Wish i could’ve and dedicated it to them both. I also wish I could’ve gone back to when I was applying to colleges. I thought I wasn’t smart enough o pursue science or medicine. I was discouraged from it. I wish I believed in myself and pursued it sooner and got into nursing because that’s what I really wanted to do."

13. Singing And Making Pies With My Baby

"If I traveled back to one point in time in my life I would go back to 5th grade and have myself choose to do Chorus over Band because back then there was a big stigma supported by both sexes that only girls could do chorus and I chose band. While it was interesting at first, I really didn’t have a great time from 8th grade through high school because it was a very strict environment. Now in college I have a few friends who are incredibly good singers (have done charity events and raised hundreds of thousands of dollars because they’re so good) and they’ve told me that I have a good natural voice or throat or whatever (because I d*ck around in the studio and they know void control more than I do) and they say that I would be very good if I had the years of lessons they did. On top of that I have very good memory for lyrics and much better voice control than interment control so yeah… I wish I could have gone back, been the one guy in chorus and worked on my voice and maybe had some lessons on the side so I could be proud of something I have a natural inclination for. I think it’s really important to create music ad I feel frustrated that I dumped the time and money id di into something that never gave me true satisfaction.

…But like also I could have gone back and made u my official trap queen so idk."

14. NYC Has The Best Ramen

"Two summers ago I went to NYC with my best friend to visit her sister. At the time, I hated New York. I’d only seen Times Square and miscellaneous pockets of Central Park, and just really hated the smell of hot trash on a summer day. Which makes sense. But you guessed it - the trip was insane. From the exposed brick in the Brooklyn Apartment, ti the 2am Harlem subway adventure, to the best late night bowl of ramen that ANYONE will ever have in their life, and of course, the sunset from the rooftop garden at the met. If I could go back, I would stay at the met a few more hours, maybe. Probably wouldn’t have bought those ugly $20 jeans from topshop. I wouldn’t change much else - I’d just want to experience my short blip in NYC all over again."

15. Maine Question

"I’d go back to the day that my grandpa was in the hospital and it was the last day he could actually comprehend and speak to us, and ask him what he’d want us to do with our cottage in Maine, because to this day, I wish I knew what he would’ve wanted."

16. Just Do It

"I would go back to high school and do it over. I’d do it better."

17. Take the Good and the Bad

"If I could go back in time, I wouldn't. Not in fear of changing anything, not in fear that it would be worse, none of that. I live with my decisions, good and bad, and all of the in between. I am who I am, I did what I did, and I'm here right now. I have one life, why not live it?"

And that's it, but not really right? We all have things that we want to and will want to fix, so what would you go back and change?

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This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
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