Do you wish you could return to a moment in your past?

The first step to answering a question, especially one as vague as this one, is to understand exactly what it is asking.  The question, “Do you wish you could return to a moment in your past?” is a yes or no question, but I assume it is also asking which moment I would returned to. I will also answer this question with the assumption that I would just be re-experiencing the past the way it happened or at least that any changes I make would not affect the present timeline, which means no investing in Apple or stopping COVID. Finally, I will take “moment” to mean a few hours or less.

The three types of answers that come to mind are happy moments, regrets, and ways to benefit my present. There are many happy moments that I am tempted to pick. Unfortunately, memory is unreliable and nostalgia is powerful. I wouldn’t want to risk returning to a happy memory only to realize that elements were fictional. I was also younger when many of these memories were formed so it is possible that there were negatives to these situations that I was too young to pick up on. For someone with a happy memory that could no longer be replicated (for example if they lost a loved one), choosing this option would make sense, but I can still do most of the activities in my happy memories and I don’t want to ruin any of my possibly unreliable memories.

The next category of answers that I can think of would be regrets. Despite my actions in my return to the past not being able to change the present, there are still moments where it would be interesting to see what else could have happened in just that moment. I could also use this return to the past as a time to do things without experiencing long term legal or social consequences. I could try out jokes, ask embarrassing questions, or learn how people would react if I took certain actions.

The final category of answers would be those that benefit the present. Without directly changing the present there are still many ways that I could go back in time to obtain information that would help me. For example, if I am debating someone, I could have the debate with a past version of them, learn their counter arguments, and then formulate responses. I could also use this ability to make money. I could participate in a trivia contest and then head to the past to look up the answers. If I was struggling on a test I could go back and check the textbook. I would not choose any of these options because they seem unethical and there is one final option that I prefer.

Until I think of something more creative, my answer to this question would be yes, but I would save the ability until a crisis. If someone is having a heart attack, I could go back in time to refresh my knowledge of CPR. If my house were on fire, I could go back just a few minutes to figure out where my cats were and plan my escape so that when I return to the present I can quickly grab them and leave. While I am sure someone has a more creative idea for how to utilize this ability, I feel safe in the decision to save it for an emergency. If I get to the end of my life and I have not used my wish, then I would choose a happy memory to return to. Although I don’t know exactly which I would choose, It would be some moment with family and friends. Maybe I would choose a holiday, a good meal, or just some time at the park (although returning to a period of non-fiction writing class would be right up there too).