You cannot change the past; you can only hope to change the future, and then only a tiny bit. You can learn from the past, but you cannot change it. The past becomes immutable the instant a moment transforms into a memory. If you had hoped to maintain some degree of control over that moment, the instant it passes all hope ceases and you should then look ahead rather than backwards armed with the new knowledge you possess. I realize all this may sound glaringly obvious, yet that does not address the fact millions and millions and millions of people spend the bulk of their lives staring backwards—ruing what they might have done differently that might have changed the trajectories of their lives in a way that would have ensured more happiness. And that is probably the most germane point which can be taken away from this mini-discussion. Namely, there are fundamentally only two types of people who populate Earth’s surface: Those who look to the past for solace, and those who look to the future for inspiration.
Fred's Soapbox 