Today's article is sharing my thoughts on the topic of moving forward in life, which has a massive reference from the 2014 Ethan Hawke movie Predestination. If you haven't watched it and have plans to do so, definitely go and do that, as this will be a significant spoiler. I will try and explain it the best I can to give some context on what I'm writing about.
The film's basic synopsis is about time travel and going back in time to try and stop a fizzle bomber who caused several deaths in New York in 1975. It all started with Jane, who was born and left at an orphanage in 1945. Jane was born with male and female organs; however, she didn't know this until later in the movie. Jane grows up and tries to live life trying to make something of herself. Unfortunately, she didn't really succeed in becoming anything, and something was just always holding her back. Despite that fact, she was very brilliant.
Anyways fast forward a little bit. Jane meets a man while she is in night school. They get together, he leaves her, never to be seen again, and then Jane finds out she is pregnant with this man's kid. Jane ends up having the child, but... the child gets kidnapped. (yeah, Jane really doesn't have the best luck in life.) Jane gave birth via caesarean, and the doctor discovered that Jane is indeed intersex and told Jane as there was a significant complication with her female organs during labour. The male organs in Jane's body were the only functioning organs. This led to Jane taking on an 11-month transition into becoming a man, and thus Jane became John. (hmm, I guess some things we can't control.)
So John goes to a bar and meets a bartender man. (The bartender is himself, who travelled back in time, but doesn't reveal this to John yet) The bartender tells John if I could take you back to when you were Jane and kill the man that left you and led you down this path, pregnant and alone, caused an involuntary sex change, no stability for career or funds, and you will face no consequences would you kill him? John says yes, so they time travel back to when John was Jane, leaving night school. About to meet the man that left her. John then waits for the man that ruined his life, ready to kill him. However... MAJOR PLOT TWIST! John realises that man was himself!!! ( best believe it gets crazier from here) John falls in love with Jane. (Himself) and gets with Jane knowing what will happen afterwards. Anyways John ends up leaving Jane to go to the future to be this temporal agent that goes back in time to stop the fizzle bomber... wait another twist... who was actually himself in a later life!!!??? (This was the most confusing and exciting movie ever!! 4/5).
I know it's crazy and hard to follow. Definitely watch the movie, if you haven't, because I was mind boggled! And you will be too, if you have watched it, you can understand the plot I'm trying to explain.
After watching this movie, it was like I had become enlightened, and I had learned so much about life, choice, free will and predestination. This is how I interpreted the movie.
Number 1. All choices, every decision people make, come from a desire. This can be an impulse and aspiration that stems from how we think, our beliefs, the way we feel, and our morals. 90% of things predestined and the inevitable are all rooted in people's choices, which we all make. Things are set in stone because you made it, I made it, or someone else with their choice made it that way. Our choices come from the fact that we don't know the future, and seeing that future might not change it. Let me provide you with an example. Someone comes to me, asking if I want to see my future, and I eagerly say yes. The person shows me my future in 20 years, and I see that I will be a surgeon. The me of today looking at that might disapprove of that life choice and decide I'm not going to do that, I'm gonna change my course. Not yet knowing what I will experience, how my mindset would have changed, the things I saw and did in those 20 years that led me down the path of a surgeon I ended up choosing for myself.
Number 2. My choice creates a series of events that lead to a path to my purpose. The inevitable, the thing I always choose for myself. For Jane/John, it was to be a temporal agent always to be stuck in that loop to right his wrong. There is debate about whether we really have a choice of free will in life if everything has already been predetermined? But I believe that the decisions and the motives behind those decisions are what leads to my predestined life... with what I've been given. Kind of making lemons with lemonade. (I know it's all sounding intense, bear with me). In my view, predetermination is just us living through life choices. John had a chance to stop the loop as he was aware that he was the cause of everything. Despite knowing all the facts, he was his own demise. John kept making the same decision again and again based on his free will. He had the opportunity to make things right and not sleep with Jane - (who just gives birth to himself. Yes, John is his own mother and father, like I said, confusing film) and could stop this whole fizzle bomber loop but keeps doing it anyway. It was he's on free will. I think we all heard the phrase if I could go back in time and change things, I would do this or that. This movie showed that things might still turn out the same.
Number 3. Life has to just take its course. All I can do is try to move forward and learn, evolve and make things better for myself. Going back won't change things. It's what you do from here on out that can change the outcome of tomorrow. 'Don't do yesterday what you are supposed to do tomorrow.' - A quote from the film. Don't live in the past! I also feel that the phrase 'you cannot heal in the environment you got sick' means to keep going back to a situation that will not help me progress and improve. It's about what I will do to change things from this day forward. One way could be renewing my mind, which can alter things. I believe that's why in the end, the fizzle bomber (the older version of John) tells the new face John says (watch the film it's gonna make more sense) The only way this is gonna end is if you love me / accept me (John ends up going crazy from jumping back in time in excess) The change starts with you. I'll end with this quote.
"Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results." - Albert Einstien.
Anu Aborisade
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