Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

  
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is an enthralling film starring Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet as the two main characters. Without giving too much away, I'll just say that they portray two people who think that they have fallen apart, until drastic measures are taken and all they really want to do is have their love put back together once again. (I highly recommend it as one of my favorites. However, in case you decide to look up the trailer on YouTube, it is most definitely not a "romantic comedy" like it suggests–it is actually rather sad.)

Long story short, an anguished man longs to forget his lost love until his memories begin to be erased. It is only as his mind relives them that he decides that, no matter the pain he faces thinking of what was and what could have been, he wouldn't trade his memories with his old flame for the world.

Poet Alexander Pope also once wrote, "How happy is the blameless vestal's lot! The world forgetting, by the world forgot. Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind! Each pray'r accepted, and each wish resign'd."

Of course, something like this is not necessarily feasible in reality. Our memories can't ever be erased, no matter how much we might wish it. But what if we had the opportunity to?

Would you choose a lifetime of rain over one that you never knew existed? How desperate would you be to go back and re-live the times that you favor (or regret) the most? Would you choose to move on, or stay cemented in thoughts?

I have been toying with this post in my mind for a bit now, trying to determine just where I want to place my overall focus. After much consideration, I have decided that I want to put some perspective on the notion of risk.

What exhilaration is there in life without the fear taking a chance here and there?

Say for instance, we could erase everything. Take back everything we wish we had never said, avoid meeting people who ended up being toxic to us, forget every piece of sadness to ever touch our lives. How would we learn?

There is no harm in reminiscing, but there is some danger in living vicariously through our memories. Remaining in what once was, it can be hard to move forward. Thoughts can rust away, but they never truly can diminish in themselves.

So, in theory, if you had the opportunity to "erase" every memory that you wish that you could–would you?