There are several episodes in my life about which I sometimes stop and think, and wonder how things might have turned out had I chosen a different path.
Frozen in time
In each case, the decision I made at the time was determined by the overall situation. Had the circumstances been different, I would have chosen another path.
“Ah, if I knew then what I know now…”: a futile thought. It’s currently impossible* to transmit information into the past. And if it were possible, well, that would result in a classic paradox: the new path chosen in the past (as a direct result of the additional information) would cause the present to disappear in a puff of logic — and so there would be no information to transmit to the past in the first place.
Life is a circle
Still with me?
What’s done is done; the past is dead and gone. The future, though, that’s a different matter: the decisions we make today impact upon the lives of others; our actions spread like ripples on a pond.
Do we have free will? It’s a mystery.
* I don’t, as a rule, hold with the concept of ‘impossibility’ — until something has been tried, you don’t know what might happen.
Wibble 
In Against The Wind, Bob Seger said, “Wish I didn’t know now what I didn’t know then…!”
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thought provoking post! I try very hard not to cry over spilled milk. What I’ve determined in my 58 years of living is that we make the best decisions we know how, given our current situation and circumstances. We decide and move on, learn from our mistakes and don’t beat ourselves up over the would’ve, could’ve, should’ve.
Free will? I think so….but keep in mind, what ever our life’s destiny is, it seems to me we find unrest and discontent until we are walking it…and I do think we all have our special place…but not every one realizes it or believes it to be so.
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Jeannie said it all for me. Thanks, Eric
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Awww, Eric, you didn’t give me enough to hook some music onto. Play the game! :P
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Fantastic points altogether, you simply received a new reader. What could you suggest in regards to your post that you simply made some days in the past? Any positive?
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WordPress flagged your comment as spam (I don’t know why). Sadly, I’m unable to answer the question you pose, as I’m sorry to admit that I don’t understand it. Could you rephrase?
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Here’s an interview with the author of a very interesting new book (speaking of free will): How Your Unconscious Mind Rules Your Behavior.
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Leonard Mlodinow is clearly very knowledgeable in his field. I’ve read his ‘Drunkard’s Walk’ and found that very interesting.
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