Every so often when I’m not devoting my mind to anything in particular I’ll start to play the ‘if’ game. The very first question that pops in my head is also the biggest and most life-changing.

What if my parents had never decided to move up to the middle of nowhere from Waukegan? I would’ve grown up in the suburbs, would’ve spent more time with my family (since they’re all down there), would’ve been hit harder by their tragedies and been more involved in their successes. I could’ve turned out a totally different person – someone who didn’t care about an education. If I had been the same, I imagine I would’ve ended up in some nice school down there, but who knows?

I might’ve never found an interest in art. The very first drawing I remember is when my mom showed me how to draw a picture of our house. What if she hadn’t? Would I have developed a talent for something else? I would’ve never made the decision to go to UW-Marathon. That’s what led me to meeting Abe and my other friends, and it’s what brought me to this city in the first place. I could’ve gone to Point right away, however unlikely, or MIAD, or some other school far, far away from Wisconsin.

There’s a perception, and I like to believe it, that we live in just one of an infinite amount of parallel universes, all of which vary from eachother by one and only one decision. It’s a mind-boggling concept, imagining these parallel worlds totally in sync with one another as they divide and divide with each decision made. If it’s a reality it would be quite amazing to see my parallel selves. I wonder how many of me are writing this right now?