What would you change?
In 1985 everyone was going back in time! Back To The Future, My Science Project, The Blue Yonder and Peggy Sue Got Married.
Back To The Future, by all accounts, was a perfect film.
Danielle Von Zerneck was fabulous as Ellie Sawyer in My Science Project.
But, I’ve always had a soft spot for Francis Ford Coppola’s, Peggy Sue Got Married.
Back To The Future gave us a glimpse into Marty’s parent’s adolescence. We met his grandparents and experienced the 1950s through of eyes of someone whose
entire future was still ahead of him.
For Peggy Sue, it was behind her. She went back carrying the weight of knowing
how the story turned out. Most of their dreams didn’t come true. Not for her or her peers and definitely not for her husband.
The film did a fantastic job subtlty pointing out all the things
we placed so much importance on growing up, that, as it turns out, weren’t really important at all.
Peggy’s emotional intensity of seeing her grandparents again was quite beautiful, because she was seeing them with adult eyes.
One of the reasons I loved this film was, it wasn’t just entertainment. It made you think and it made you feel…
I think we all look back through that lens from time to time. Knowing what we know now…. What if?
I read a quote recently, and I’m paraphrasing, that said:
“Getting older is an extraordinary process where we finally get to become the people we were always meant to be”
Growing up most of us wanted to be rockstars, movie stars, athletes, etc.
None of us were in our guidance counselor’s office saying “I’d like to break the generational curse"
For me, I can unequivocally say one of the biggest reasons I loved every minute of my Gen X childhood was, I simply didn’t know any better.
I didn’t know I wouldn't stick the landing every time. I didn’t know my dreams wouldn’t come true.
But, here’s the thing: They actually did.
Everything I thought I wanted, isn’t what I needed. Now, I hate platitudes as much as anyone so, I’ll try and find a better way to say this...
Some of the things I was reaching for would have taken me to a place that looked shiny but, in reality would have been very self-destructive.
That extraordinary process of aging has helped me understand myself in a way that was impossible as a teenager.
What would I change?
Nothing.
The Gen X Reflex