2008 Woodie Awards
College Life
Looking back and moving forward
Alec Troxell
Issue date: 4/8/04 Section: Features
- Page 1 of 1
The past: some people try to forget it and start anew by simply living in the moment. Others live in the past, wishing they could go back in time if only for just that one moment. Regardless of how we choose to acknowledge it, the reality is that the past is behind us and there's no turning back. Once the hands of time have touched our lives, we can't reverse them. We aren't entirely empty-handed though; we still have a chance to relive our experiences through our memories. We do our best to forget the painful memories while still holding tightly to the happy ones.
This weekend, I was able to revisit a part of my past on my way home for spring break, and it was quite a trip.
On my way home, I stopped at Penn State University for Pennsylvania's high school swimming States competition to watch some of my old teammates compete. Since my graduation from the team, my mother has become the assistant coach, and since I was able to stay free of charge in my mother's hotel room, I had the opportunity to go and support my teammates. Unbeknownst to them, they were evoking a whirlpool of emotion by bringing me down memory lane.
As I watched, I was taken back to the time I spent on that deck, the people I spent it with, and all the emotions that came with it. I thought back and wished that I could return to those good times. I remembered it all as if it was yesterday. That familiar feeling of pride and anticipation rose up inside me as I listened to the Star Spangled Banner. I remembered the depression I felt weeks after returning from the event due to the realization that it was all over. It was a great time, and I would give anything to go back and do it all over again.
We all get feelings like these periodically. Memories move to the front of our minds, and for a few minutes, we relive our past. If only time wasn't so permanent, would we go back and change everything? Or would we leave it untouched only to be an observer? Personally, I'd give anything to start over at the age of eight and relive it once more, not changing a single thing.
Maybe someday in the future, through some miraculous scientific advances, time travel will become possible. Until then, we still have our memories.
This weekend, I was able to revisit a part of my past on my way home for spring break, and it was quite a trip.
On my way home, I stopped at Penn State University for Pennsylvania's high school swimming States competition to watch some of my old teammates compete. Since my graduation from the team, my mother has become the assistant coach, and since I was able to stay free of charge in my mother's hotel room, I had the opportunity to go and support my teammates. Unbeknownst to them, they were evoking a whirlpool of emotion by bringing me down memory lane.
As I watched, I was taken back to the time I spent on that deck, the people I spent it with, and all the emotions that came with it. I thought back and wished that I could return to those good times. I remembered it all as if it was yesterday. That familiar feeling of pride and anticipation rose up inside me as I listened to the Star Spangled Banner. I remembered the depression I felt weeks after returning from the event due to the realization that it was all over. It was a great time, and I would give anything to go back and do it all over again.
We all get feelings like these periodically. Memories move to the front of our minds, and for a few minutes, we relive our past. If only time wasn't so permanent, would we go back and change everything? Or would we leave it untouched only to be an observer? Personally, I'd give anything to start over at the age of eight and relive it once more, not changing a single thing.
Maybe someday in the future, through some miraculous scientific advances, time travel will become possible. Until then, we still have our memories.