Thursday, February 16, 2012

Life as a Tree


Sometimes i like to think of life as a tree. At every juncture, life presents us with myriad choices and multitude of options. Our choice further determines the course and nature of our journey. Every choice or circumstance exercise their influence on our lives. Even small things matter. Suppose, my name had not been what it is, i may have ended up in a different class,grown up in a different atmosphere with a different peer group. My character may have moulded differently and i may not be the person that i am today.So basically, from the moment we are born, there are potentially infinite number of ways we can live it. The possibilities are limitless. We all start at the root, but there are infinite leaf nodes that are potentially achievable.

Assume i'm at the root of that subtree in the image. Had i taken the left branch highlighted by yellow, i will have ended up in a completely different leaf. Had i taken the right red one, i will end up in a different leaf. This same idea has been talked about in the movie 'Butterfly Effect'. There, Ashton Kutcher goes back to the past and just changes a small insignificant detail. That will further cascade throughout his life and when he's back to the present he's in a completely different place and a different person. Of course, we humans dont have the luxury to "Backtrack" :D . So every decision counts.Right now i'm at a particular juncture but there are a thousand different endings possible here based on the decisions i take in life. So every time i screw up, i'm still hopeful i can always turn it around and end up in a favourable 'leaf' :D. That further sums up the innate beauty and intricacy of life.So, even if you are in a difficult position right now. Remember, there a thousand endings possible. The power is in your hands. A happy ending is always possible.