The Things That Almost Happened

Sometimes I think about all the things that almost became part of my life
Not the things I lost I mean the things that never even got the chance to exist. A plan that got cancelled at the last minute. A place I almost visited. A decision I almost made. A message I typed but never sent. A person I almostbecame friends with. A conversation that could have changed something, but somehow never happened.
What if all of those moments were saved somewhere?
Like a hidden folder called “Deleted Scenes”, containing every version of my life that I almost lived. There would probably be some very random things in there.
A different school. A different city. A different friend group. Maybe a hobby I gave up before I even properly started it, Maybe a day when I was supposed to go somewhere but stayed home instead. Maybe one tiny decision that felt completely unimportant at the time, but could have taken everything in another direction.
Aur sabse ajeeb baat ye hai ki humein kabhi pata hi nahi chalta ki kaunsa moment important tha.
Sometimes we only understand the weight of a decision after years have passed.
Maybe that’s why “what if” is such a dangerous little phrase.
What if I had said yes?
What if I had said no?
What if I had gone there that day?
What if I had taken that opportunity?
What if I had started earlier?
What if I had stayed?
What if I had left?
We can spend hours building entire alternate lives around one tiny decision. And yet, there’s something strangely comforting about knowing that we will never know. Because maybe not every road was meant to be taken.
Kuch raaste sirf isliye nahi chhoot jaate ke humne galat decision liya tha. Kabhi kabhi bas waqt, circumstances, ya life itself kuch aur likh rahi hoti hai.
I sometimes wonder what my deleted scenes would look like.
Would they be happier?
Would they be more exciting?
Would I recognise that version of myself?
Or would I look at that life and quietly think, “Thank God this one never happened.” Maybe the things that never happened are also part of who we are.
The unanswered message. The cancelled plan. The opportunity we didn't take. The random “maybe someday” that never became a someday, They don't exist in our reality, but somehow they still exist in our imagination.
And perhaps that's what makes them so interesting. We remember the life we have, but sometimes we secretly wonder about the lives we almost had.
If you could open a folder containing every deleted scene from your life, what do you think would be inside?
And honestly…
Would you actually want to watch it?