Back in Time

I have discovered something new. Something exciting. Something magical. Something I can’t seem to put my finger on. Something that hadn’t affected me before, but seems to have meaning now.

Born in 1979, I am an 80s child at heart. So, of course I’ve seen the Back the Future trilogy when 2015 was still a few decades away (2015 being their future).

My childhood slipped away and I had forgotten about Back to the Future. The lessons I could have learned were lost on me. I am no longer young. 2015 has come and gone. I remember seeing the time-traveling DeLorean in my city on Back to the Future Day (October 21, 2015). I thought it was awesome, but I moved on.

Fast forward to 2021. I was going through some major life changes – leaving a long-term relationship and leaving the big city for rural Nova Scotia, deciding to put my homeschooled son into public school for the first time, and working on my blog and business more. After a few months of living this new life, we were deciding what to watch for family night. It must have been my “density” to watch it this year. I was enamored, filled with moments of, “How did I not see this before?” It was like I watched it for the first time. I understood it on a whole new, adult level. I learned lessons that have been overlooked by my younger self, and probably by a lot of people, who were more interested in a handsome Marty McFly being whisked away to different times, or an eccentric scientist, or the funny moments, or just the genre of time travel in general.

I couldn’t believe what I missed. Perhaps I wasn’t in the right place, or had the right mindset back in the 80s. Heck, I was just a kid! I didn’t learn things from movies; I just enjoyed them for the entertainment value. Either way, I’m not going to let it slip away this time.

I want to share what wisdom I gleaned from the blockbusters. Next time you watch Back to the Future, perhaps you can feel the magic I did that August night.

1. “Your future hasn’t been written yet. No one’s has. Your future is whatever you make it. So make it a good one.”

Wise words from Doc. We have the power to change our lives, no matter our circumstances. We are in control. If I took the advice back then, there’s no telling where I would be right now. It’s not too late, and perhaps I wasn’t ready for the wisdom at the time. Maybe I needed to hear this now, because I find myself getting caught in the trap of negative thinking and regretting that I’m now in my 40s without much to show for it.

2. One small change can impact the future.

In most time travel movies, shows, or books, the time traveler is advised not to do anything because the smallest thing can alter the present as they know it. So why don’t we make that small change to alter the course of our lives? Just one small change to a habit and you could be in a very different place in your future. You can’t change the past, so why not change your future?

3. Don’t live a life of regrets.

Live life to the fullest. Take every opportunity. Take risks. Don’t allow fear to hold you back and stop you from doing what you want or need to do. Life is too short to not go out and grab the bull by the horns!

4. Everyone has what it takes to come out on top…no matter how much of a screw up.

Look at how Mr. Strickland called Marty a slacker, and his father before him. He basically said that he wouldn’t amount to anything just because he’s a McFly. Marty seemed to be a slacker in the beginning, but he grew so much throughout the trilogy. If you think you are a screw-up, you just have to rise to the occasion, instead of backing down. That will also help build your confidence and help you succeed. George McFly had two versions. He starts out being a bit of a wimp. When he stood up for himself in the past, with Marty’s help, he became different in his present. Same with Marty; he grew throughout the trilogy to the mature, grown-up Marty in Part III. We can all change our lives like that, even if you find it hard to believe you could be different than the person you are today.

5. Friendship.

Doc and Marty are an unusual pairing, but through their time-traveling, their friendship grew stronger. Doc was accidentally sent back to 1885. He sent a note through time to Marty (how cool was that?). He says: “I will always treasure our relationship and think on you with fond memories, warm feelings, and a special place in my heart.” The letter also included the request not to follow him to the distant past. Though sad to never see his friend again, Marty would have agreed…except that he found out Doc was about to die. He couldn’t let that happen, so went back to the old west to warn him, risking his own life. This is true friendship.

6. Good things happen to those that rise to the occasion.

If Marty just let his life go in the direction it was going, then he wouldn’t have changed his life. Don’t let life happen to you. Make it happen!

7. Growth.

When you rise to the occasion you have no choice but to grow. Your experiences make you stronger and smarter. If you shy away from them, you will not advance…if you go through a variety of experiences, you life will be richer for it. We are not on this planet to stagnate.

8. Problem solving.

Instead of backing down from obstacles, Marty met them head on. He did what he had to do. He accidentally caused his mother to fall in love with him instead of his father. He had to somehow fix it, then figure out how to get back to 1985.

9. Love.

It hits you when you least expect it. Doc had no interest or time for matters of the heart. Then appeared Clara…and his life forever changed in the blink of an eye. It complicated things and he eventually felt compelled to tell her the truth about his inter-time traveling. She didn’t believe him, but eventually true love won out and she went back to him…dangerously, by hopping on the train that was speeding towards a cliff. He gave up traveling with Marty in the DeLorean to save Clara’s life with the hoverboard. We later find out that he brought her along on some time-traveling adventures. As a hopeless romantic, I was so happy to see it worked out between them.

10. Trains can travel at 88mph if you have a supply of presto logs! HA!

I’m not usually a sci-fi/comic con type of person. I’m not a nerd…not even close. Despite that, I decided to go with my sister-in-law who is into that stuff. To get the whole experience, I dressed as a character, like many people do at these things. It is commonly referred to as cosplay. I went as Marty McFly – his Part III, poncho-wearing, old west version.

To some, it looked like I was taking an obsession too far. It was more than that to me. I wanted to embody his characteristics. Sure, he was a goof-off at first, but throughout the trilogy he grew as a person. He seems more mature and grown up in the third installment, which is one of the many reasons Part III is my favourite in the trilogy. A lot of it has to do with all he’s been through – all his experiences of the trilogy. It would have been a boring movie if there were no obstacles and the main character didn’t grow stronger by the end.

After watching Back to the Future again after all these years, a whole new world opened up to me. I believe in myself more, and what I can do. I have new aspirations. I have more confidence. This was meant to be.

I believe our future can be changed and it’s not predetermined – we don’t need to travel in time to affect our future – if we go back in time and know that one little thing can change the course of our lives, why don’t we change one little thing to change the course of our lives in the future?

Another, rather controversial, idea I had was…why not pretend that we are living in a new reality after changing one thing in the past? Yes, our experiences made us who we are, but what if you started acting as if you made a different decision back then? How would you act? What positive habits would you have? That could literally change your life in front of your eyes!

I’ll give you an example. The biggest turning point in my life so far happened when I moved from a small town to the outskirts of a city, just prior to starting grade 3. I know if I handled it better, then I would have made friends, not be as shy, not allow myself to be bullied, be more positive, etc. Those things alone would have changed my life. What if I pretended that I wasn’t as shy, or that I was more positive back then? Then I would be less shy and more positive now. I would have the confidence now. So I wouldn’t be holding myself back. In grade 3, I wasn’t old enough to have the self-awareness I do now. But instead of looking back, I am looking forward. I know now what I didn’t know then. I can be better now, after forgiving myself for not knowing better then.

I encourage you to look into your own life. Find that one thing that happened in your life that you wish you could have made a better decision. What would that decision be? Now, imagine that you made the better decision back then. How different would your life be? I guarantee that any decision, no matter how small, will change your life a lot as time goes on. Each decision you make puts you on a different trajectory. Imagine you are walking in the woods and heading in a certain direction. You look at your compass and notice you are one degree off your path. No big deal, you think. If you keep following that line, you will find that one degree turns into ten degrees. Further on, it could become 50 degrees. The same is true of life, in the negative, as well as the positive.

I hope you enjoyed reading this post as much as I enjoyed writing it. This goes to show the timelessness of Back to the Future. It’s funny, I was into it, especially the third part, so much in my childhood, but I forgot about it over the years. Suddenly it came zooming back into my life at 88 miles per hour. I can’t go back from this. I don’t think my life will ever be the same.

I know I posted about BTTF and also the show’s star Michael J. Fox, a bunch in blog posts and personal posts on my page…I think this will the last mention of it for a while. It just goes to show how it affected me. I hope these lessons also help you in your own life. You deserve a life of courage, success, strength, love, friendship, laughter, and happiness. May your life be passionate!