…to set things right—or at least, more favourable to our whims and wants. The very thought of changing the present to steer the future sounds like the plot of a sci-fi film, doesn’t it? Back to the Future comes to mind, where Marty McFly grapples with the fabric of time only to realise how intricate and delicate it is. Or maybe it’s more like Octavia Butler’s Kindred where history’s weight pulls you back, even as you struggle to move forward. Different mediums, same preoccupation: time’s hold over us, the paths we forge, the choices we make.
- Choice, Chance, and Change
- Choice: We’re always making them, even when we’re not.
- Chance: Just another roll of the dice, ever hopeful that our 11’s and 7’s don’t come up 6’s and 9’s
- Change: The only constant, as the cliché goes, yet so elusive when we need it most.
These three C’s circulate in my thoughts like constellations in a midnight sky, seemingly unconnected but shaping the landscape of everything I know.
So, can we change the present to change the future?
Yes. And no. It’s a paradox, like Schrödinger’s cat. Until you open the box, the cat is both alive and dead. In the same way, the act of changing the present both does and does not change the future.
The Greek philosopher Heraclitus famously noted that you can’t step into the same river twice. The water’s changed, and so have you. By merely existing, you’ve altered the current of life. But there’s a difference between passive change—change that happens to you—and active change—change that you initiate.
Consider the butterfly effect, that concept rooted in chaos theory and popularised by Edward Lorenz. He observed that the flap of a butterfly’s wings in Brazil could set off a tornado in Texas. Small actions, rippling consequences. We see it in pop culture, don’t we? Charlie Kaufman’s Synecdoche, New York explores a life spiralling in odd directions based on the smallest of decisions. So does the Black Mirror episode Bandersnatch, where you, the viewer, control the narrative. The stakes feel high even when the choices appear trivial.
2.
- Pour tea or spill it.
- Say “I love you” or hold your tongue.
- Take the job or start your own thing.
Every decision, a domino. Some fall predictably. Others veer off, striking tiles you didn’t even know were in play. That’s the gamble, the excitement, the terror.
I think of my own decisions, sometimes made on whims, that changed the direction of my life. Notebook in hand, my head filled with Montaigne-style ponderings, I started yet another blog. And just like that, paths untrodden revealed themselves. My new platform became a connection to the world, a stage where my ideas can dance and tango with other humans.
To change the present to change the future, we don’t need a time machine or a magic wand. All we need is intentionality, the conscious act of making a choice. Of taking a chance. Of embracing change.
It’s not just about leaping into the unknown. It’s about acknowledging the ground beneath our feet and recognising its potential to shift. It’s about being aware that even as we read, think, and reflect, neurons are firing, paradigms are shifting, and somewhere—in an unnoticed corner of our existence—the future is quietly rewriting itself.
So yes, change the present. Whether it changes the future is a story yet to be written. But at least you’ll be the one holding the pen.
