A bit of an odd question…but I’d really love to hear what you guys have to say about this one. Let me set up the scenario…
Let’s say that there was another ‘you’ out there somewhere right now. You have the same mind, the same past, the same memories, the same opportunities, the same advantages and disadvantages, the same friends, the same parents, etc. BUT…let’s say that you two split up at some point…and years later, you got back together to compare notes.
Would this other ‘you’ be living a completely different life from you? You’ve been apart for years. What different choices have you made? Is his life better than yours? Worse? What would his beliefs be? What would his politics be? Would he be in a committed relationship? Would you? How would you two differ in the time you spent apart? Would you dress different? Act different? Have a different sense of humor?
Remember…this is still essentially ‘you’ that we’re talking about here. But there must have been a bunch of forks in the road since you parted ways where you went right and he went left, and vice versa, right? Would you even recognize or get along with another version of yourself? Or do you think you would still essentially be the same person, with minor changes here and there? Think about how weird that would be on either side of the equation.
Anyway, feel free to answer down below! And let me know what you think when you get a chance! Give us some details! Cool? 🙂
“At first I wanted to say we’d still be identical, but that wouldn’t be the case.
We’d be confronted with different environments and situations, which have a part in shaping our personalities, as time goes on, so we’d diverge and become more and more different (up to a point) over time, I think.
I do think everything is predetermined, physically, in the universe. Like dominos falling. Every tiny physical action, right down to the subatomic particle, sets in motion what happens. And the first domino to fall, would always lead us to this point.
So there’s no true free will. Our choices are made subconsciously. And even then, it’s shaped on things outside our control caused by our environment (genes, upbringing, phobias, temperament, how hungry we are, stimulants we’ve consumed, tired we are, etc). They can even see in real time, our brains subconsciously formulating a decision before we become consciously aware of it. It’s like we’re just the witness to the stuff going on in the dark, in the back of the brain. Weird stuff.
Funnily enough, I had a similar sort of thought, yesterday. Would I be a happier, more successful person, if I didn’t have the things that hold me back, make me introverted and lack confidence, depress me, etc. I’m battling a few demons. Have been for a while. Some since primary/elementary school. And I wonder what type of person I’d be without just one of those issues, or all of them, haunting me.
Maybe I’d be doing better, or maybe I’d have a whole new set of issues holding me down. I don’t know. My problems are all in my head, but I can’t seem to shake them. Rationally, I can pick them apart, but emotionally, they still plague me. It sucks.” – Mike
“I’ve often wondered what if…
What if I had done pretty much EVERYTHING differently.
What would I have been like if I stood up to bullies at school. What if I had more confidence and belief in myself.
What if I had tried harder to make friends and be better at school etc.
I think my life would of turned out VERY different. I might of actually moved to the US as I had dreamed when younger, found better jobs or certainly been more proactive/confident to move up the corporate ladder (been thinking that allot lately when I see how people I went to school have done compared with me)
I to thought about acting when I was younger but was too shy to try out for it. If I had been more confident with making friends etc maybe I’d of had proper relationships etc.
However… it would also depend on when this divergence happened… We are a all influenced by our childhood/up bringing so I wonder just how different another me would actually be and to be honest if that other me had turned out to be all the things I wish had happened to me, I’m not sure I would want to know.” – Dom
Two of me. There’s an interesting thought. I’ve actually considered this to a point before. As many people know, I have had my struggles in the past. Pitfalls that shaped who I eventually would become. What if another version of me didn’t experience the one event in my life that would ultimately lead me to make a series of mistakes that would drastically change everything, leading to who I am today. What would that guy look like? Be like? Would I even like him? Would I envy him? Would I want to kick his ass… I don’t know. LOL!
I would think that with all the good that could come from having not struggled as much with my own self-identity and self-loathing, there would have to have been some trade-offs. I spent a great deal of my adult life doing things that I actually am proud of and even overshadow some of the bad. If I hadn’t needed to work so hard to overcome the bad, I don’t think I would have invested as much energy into what I would eventually do for others. I may have liked myself much more and become more self-involved. Then I wouldn’t have felt the need to help others as much. I wouldn’t have been as invested in wanting to find good in me to give it to anyone else. So with that thought in mind, I may have focussed more on what I wanted for myself because I may have felt like I deserved it instead of what others needed/wanted because I felt like I didn’t deserve to be any more than someone else’s foundation for their own happiness. So if I ever met this other me, I may not even like him. Or I may resent all that he kept that I lost over time, overlooking the fact that he didn’t have to rebuild so may actually be weaker, possibly even a little sheltered. Not appreciating what he still has because he didn’t have to lose everything many times and need to struggle to get back on his feet to reclaim who he was.
The other side of that coin, he would still be me. I think his overall likes and dislikes that I have maintained from before that splitting off time would primarily remain the same so we would maintain that familiar common ground that could become a stepping stone toward finding friendship or something along those lines. He may have been exposed to foods and experiences that I have not been and could recommend things I should like based on his knowledge of our common likes and dislikes. That could open up a whole new world to me as well as give me the opportunity to return the favor. So splitting off and comparing notes after the fact could be rewarding as well. I guess it would be a little like twins separated as children finding each other as adults. In as much as we see the initial commonness of where they came from, they still have so much that is different that if shared could enrich the perspective of the other. Then they would have a common ground again in a sense.
Then I could introduce him to the group of friends I have found that understand and appreciate/tolerate my warped sense of humor and see if he passes their inspection 😉 – JeffsFort
“Would this version of ‘me’ be all that different from a separate version of ‘me’? As much as I like to pride myself on just being an honest representation of myself no matter where I am or what I’m going through…I think another version of myself would be drastically different from who I identify as ‘me’ today. It’s something that I think about from time to time, and it’s true. A few different choices could have radically changed my life in ways that I can’t even imagine, really. It sort of makes me appreciate the fragile and delicate nature of the whole idea. You know?
I mean, what if I had taken a different class in high school or sat at a different lunch table, and never met my first true love and the best friend of my entire life? What if I gave up and used those razor blades in my dresser drawer to kill myself when that felt like the only way out of my situation? What if I had come out of the closet at 14 and just found myself a boyfriend and lived happily ever after? Soooo many questions that I’ll never get the answers to. But it’s intriguing to think that my entire existence could have been altered in an instant, had I gone a different way.
Would another ‘me’ be better off than I am now? Hmmmm…maybe? I guess. Don’t get me wrong, I’m HAPPY being who I am. But I often wonder if another version of me would have chosen a route to continue acting or modeling and might have made it big. Or if I kept up with my drawing and became a respected artist. I wonder if I might have taken some of the chances that I probably should have taken when it came to finding a relationship, and could be cuddled up with some sweetheart every night, falling asleep with a smile on my face. And all of these things would have effects on everything else as well…and that’s why I’m glad that I made the choices that I did.
I mean, if I had a steady boyfriend and was content with the world in general…would I have ever been sexually frustrated enough to have ever created the Shack in the first place? Would any of these stories exist if I was happy? If I was a famous actor or something, would I be surrounded by some kind of horrific scandal in the news right now for my attractions? Would I have made a ‘mistake’ in a world where some sexy Disney teen was offered to me in a private hotel room? And what would have happened if I hadn’t moved away from Chicago? Would I be seriously struggling beyond my ability to pay rent after the pandemic? It’s crazy to think about. But I think another version of me would have made choices that came with consequences and pitfalls of their own. I just think that I would have pursued the money more, hehehe! It’s true. That was always a conflict for me. I want to do something that matters, but the whole ‘starving artist’ thing isn’t sustainable when you’re an adult. I think the other me would be more financially stable. Even if I was doing something that I wasn’t as passionate about. The comfort of it all would have been alluring. But I chose passion over comfort…hehehe, so maybe I’m the stupid one. 😛
Anyway, I think we would both have our rewards and our regrets…but we’d understand why we made the choices that we did. And we’d be better friends for it. So…hypotheticals aside, we’d pretty much be able to see each other eye to eye.
Unless he tried to take Stefan Benz from me! Then I’d have to cut a motherfucker! LOL! He’s MINE! You hear me?” – Comicality
If you guys ever want to add your two cents to any one of the ‘Q & A’ sessions for future issues of Imagine Magazine, we’d LOVE to hear your input and your personal stories on the forum! Feel free to attach your screen name, or do so anonymously! Drop by “The Shack Out Back” forum on the 1st of every month for a brand new topic of conversation! We look forward to hearing more from you! 🙂
