Choices and Consequences

Huge thanks to friends for inspiring this 'article', and CD Projekt Red for developing the Witcher series, games based on a novel by Andrzej Sapkowski

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Back in the day, we used to watch Saturday morning cartoons to entertain us. These cartoons were really fun and comfy to watch, and it usually depicts a rivalry or battle between good and evil. Heroes and villains will fight in exciting action scenes with gorgeous special effects, and the good guys will always win at the end.

While it may seem like harmless fun, shows and other forms of media are often injected with small doses of life lessons, and are used to teach kids to get better at life later on. As I said before, the good guys will always win, and justice will prevail.

Of course, not all cartoons are as straightforward as, say... Teen Titans. Hit cartoon Ren and Stimpy (pretty sure you'd know the Happy Happy Joy Joy song by now) was a very abstract show with probably a lot of hidden messages hidden throughout. Even now I still can't understand the intentions of the author.

But I digress. What I wanted to talk about in this post is as the title says. As you grow out of cartoons and silly superhero shows, you'll find that it isn't as simple as you thought it would be. The more involved you are in society, more and more confusion will surround you, and your views of the world will suddenly change. The line between right and wrong will eventually be blurred, you might even call it nonexistent.

You will often come at a crossroads in life. It would've been easy if there's a sign saying "Turn here, don't turn there. This is right, that is wrong," but sadly, these situations are exceptionally rare. You'll often come in a situation where there is no right or wrong. What seems to be good for you will have a negative impact on someone else, and vice versa. Not to mention when there's a lot of people involved. Yeah, you just better run away as far as you can.

But hey, it'll be right behind you before you know it. You gotta face the music sooner or later, right? That's why it's better to just throw your judgement away and think solely on your choice, and the consequences that'll follow. You'll have to look at the bigger picture and analyze the pros and cons of your choice, then decide when you're ready to face it. Of course, you need to remember that whatever impact you did on the world and the people around you, is the artifact of your own actions.

Even then, there are times where you don't even know the consequences. It's like sailing into uncharted territory, not knowing what treasures or dangers which lies ahead. Might sound exciting, but in reality, it's the worst thing that could happen in a decision-making environment. There's nothing you can do but hope for the best and land that jump into the murky waters below.

But I'm pretty sure you've listened to a bit of Zeppelin before. Here, have two lines from the hit song Stairway to Heaven:

Yes there are two paths you can go by, but in the long run...
There's still time to change the road you're on.

Understand that you don't have anyone stopping you from changing your mind. It's your path, after all. It might just take a little time, but it's a very small price to pay to ensure your happiness and well-being for the future. As they would say it: for the greater good.

So, now the clock's ticking...

What's your choice?