The culmination of our experiences is what makes us who we are, it's how we grow and at the end of the day, it's those experiences, the memories we make, that are priceless. What do you think everyone should do to grow? For me, it was taking time to travel alone.
At first, I was nervous but something beautiful happened. I was and to fully explore the areas I went to with unparalleled freedom, to truly take in how everything saw felt, the good and the bad. It built confidence and gave me a better sense of self. It doesn't have to be expensive, even a camping trip in your own state if you can. But that time to travel and reflect by yourself--you won't regret it.
Redditor Lovingnature412 wanted to know what the most important experiences were to others. They asked:
“What is something you think every human should experience and why?"
Mental self-care...
“Therapy! Even if you don't think you need it, if you have access to it you 100% should take advantage and go. It's just a good way to get to know yourself and what you want. I wish it was free for everyone.” thisismetryinggg
“worth their weight in gold...”
“Having a non-romantic friend that you can absolutely rely on and be yourself with. One that has your back, can call you out and always only wants the best for you. True friends like that are actually hard to come by and are worth their weight in gold.” moll5494
Retail workers would agree.
“Performing a customer service job for other humans for over 6 months, this will teach some people how to be a customer vs a piece of sh*t (some people)." rsplatpc
black friday thanksgiving GIF by NBCGiphyLove one another <3
“Everyone should feel love. Genuine, undying, unconditional love from the same person you love the same way. Its the most amazing thing in the world. I truly feel like a lot of the world's problems stem from people not being loved.” Pussydestroyer885
Birth control...
“A week taking care of a baby and toddler. Just so people can see how it really is. I work with a lot of people who were shocked at how much work it is. Which is fine. But parental regret is a real thing. I think people would be more cautious about birth control if they knew or had experience.” cleaning-meaning
“It was f**king h*ll...”
“A minimum wage job. I was a spoiled a** kid growing up. My parents are well-off. I was raised to be respectful/ humble (never sh*t on other kids for being poor or anything) but I never really understood the concept of 'too expensive' or 'this cost my parents x hours of time.'"
“Granted I never asked for designer clothing or anything nicer than a laptop, and my dad made enough money that the answer was usually 'an hour or less' but my parents version of making me 'earn it' was doing chores and earning that amount of money in the real world would definitely be harder."
“Summer after my sophomore yr of high school, my parents give me one week notice that they're cutting me off completely for the summer. Wish they gave me more heads up, but whatever. I managed to find a job as a dishwasher in a retirement home."
"Paid just under $7/hr after taxes. It was hell. The dishwashing machine was too loud to talk to anyone. Too many dishes to do to daydream or think about stuff, basically 0 mental stimulation."
"Time moved at a snail's pace. Hands hurt at the end of every shift from hot dishes and lots of chemicals. And I'd look around at the line cooks and realize 'holy sh*t this isn't enough for my pot, gas, and cell phone bill, and they're trying to provide for a f**king family on like less than twice as much money.' Definitely a huge wake up call in terms of how blessed I am and how grateful I should be that my parents saved for my college."
"Also, every job after seemed amazing. $10/hr after taxes to bus tables? F**king cakewalk, I get to talk to people, do more than one thing, and make more money! Delivering sandwiches for Jimmy John's for $12/hr? Dream job. My white collar job I have now? Heaven compared to that even though it's stressful." MrLionOtterBearClown
Pain...
“Mine's another sad answer - significant physical pain. Some people don't seem to understand how pain can reshape your entire world, your view of yourself, and how you think/react. I lived with chronic pain for years (femoral head ground away most of what was left of my hip socket) and I know I was a very different person then.” mctrustry
DnD...
“A good game of DnD. Where everyone is participating, everyone is so into their roles. The DM is strict but not to harsh. It's so magical.” Vladi_Sanovavich
Dungeons And Dragons Flirting GIFGiphyChange can be good.
“Realizing that you were wrong about some deeply held belief.” coookies
It is stunning.
“See the Northern Lights in action with your own eyes. You will be standing there staring, mouth agape.” Platonus44
If anything from this list the experiences that help foster empathy, understanding, and connectedness may just be the most important.
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There's nothing like leaving a movie theater having just seen an excellent movie.
Particularly one that took you by surprise.
Perhaps it was deeper and more meaningful than it purported itself to be, or on the flip side, had much more warmth and humor that you would have expected.
Or, the film took an unexpected twist that you never saw coming.
Resulting in your needing to bite your tongue until the rest of your friends and family see the film, and not spoil the surprise for them.
Redditor HornyCorny was curious to hear which plot twists left viewers utterly speechless, leading them to ask:
"What’s a movie twist that caught you completely off guard?"
He Didn't See It Coming Either!
"Brad Pitt in 'Burn After Reading'."
"So surprising and downright freaking hilarious."- thefirehairman
If The Shoe Fits...
"'The Shawshank Redemption'."
"Come on."
"It's not always a man notices another man's shoes."- FUBARspecimenT-89
Lucky For Some, Not For All...
"'Lucky Number Slevin'."
"Huge twist and very satisfying."- kvlr954
angry josh hartnett GIFGiphyRosie O'Donnell Would Agree...
"Fight Club."- BuchseeI
"once watched it with a friend who had never even heard of it, and she called the twist like, a half hour in."
"She said it as a joke and didn't realize she was right until the actual reveal, but still I was shook."- yugosaki
I See You Keyser Söze
"The ending of 'The Usual Suspects'."- Schwarzes__Loch
Definitive Shyamalan
''The Sixth Sense'."
'I love movies with plot twists, but I never imagined this one. It caught me completely off guard."- lucasduka
Haley Joel Osment Movie GIFGiphyThe Title Is Also Misleading...
"The second half of 'Parasite'."- iwontrememberthat4
Appropriately, They Really Toyed With Your Cognition
"'The Game'."- DudeHeadAwesome
"Good one!'
"I spent the entire movie going 'is it a game? Is it real?'"- fastpixels
There Were Definitely Ghosts...
"'The Others'."
"Unsuspected end."- NeckComprehensive743
scared horror film GIF by FilmStruckGiphyOne Unforgettable Opening Scene
"'Scream'."
"The Drew Barrymore role."- LivingTheLife53
The Real Reason Everyone Is Terrified Of Bees...
"When I was a kid, I wanted to feel good and happy."
"So at the video store, I decided to rent a movie with two happy laughing kids on the DVD cover, thinking it would be a feel-good playful story."
"That movie was 'My Girl'."
"Eff that movie."
"Seriously."
'The DVD cover lies."
"IT LIES."- buckyhermit
You THOUGHT you knew who the villains were...
"'From Dusk to Dawn' — midway point."
"Didn’t know at all what I was walking into when saw it in the theatre decades ago — just, you know, Salma Hayek. Good enough."
"Quentin Tarantino slurping tequila from her foot after it ran down the entire length of her leg — that was already a 'Holy WTF' moment."
"But then, well.. . you know."
"And if you don’t know — quick, go watch it. "
"No trailer, no synopsis, no summary."
"Find it and load it 'blind' and fasten your seatbelt."
"You’re in for a wild ride."- canada11235813
George Clooney Tarantino GIF by MIRAMAXGiphyIt's Title Is More Than Accurate!
"'Crazy Stupid Love'."
"The scene when the whole movie goes apesh*t in the yard is one of my all time favorite movie scenes."- Fimbulvintern
Trifecta Of Twists
"'The Others'."
"The end of 'The Mist'."
"'The Prestige' (though, I ALMOST had it figured out, but not quite)."- Krinks1
There's nothing better than when a movie surprises you.
Even if it does make talking about said movie with people who haven't seen it a bit more challenging.
Case in point, people who saw The Sixth Sense and The Usual Suspects after their endings were spoiled for them, don't seem to like those movies as much as those who went in blind.
Every family has its secrets.
It's up to every new generation to unearth it all.
Don't we all want to know if we're related to famous people?
Or what if we have a familial stake in lands and businesses?
Also, this is a good way to NOT end up dating blood relatives.
The more you know, the less awkward later.
As much as there is a lot of trauma there could be a lot of cool facts to to discuss at parties.
Redditor ForthrightPedant wanted to hear some interesting family histories, so they asked:
"What is a historical fact about your family that you think is kinda neat?"
I don't have any family history.
Of course I've done no investigating.
Maybe I do.
I should look!
Super Talent
Excited Happy Hour GIF by Boomerang OfficialGiphy"Great-grandpa created the Flintstones. Dan Gordon. Drew lots of Hannah-Barbara cartoons, and directed the first three animated Superman films at the beginning of WW2 as well as several seasons of Popeye, Scooby Doo, Smurfs, Yogi Bear, Huckleberry Hound."
downnoutsavant
Bad Voyage
"My grandfather disliked America and wanted to return to Ireland. He booked passage on the Titanic’s return voyage. If it wouldn’t have sunk, no of us would be here."
mrseddievedder
"My great-grandmother was a Titanic survivor. She was a steerage-class Lebanese immigrant in an arranged marriage. Her husband went down with the ship but she managed to make it to a lifeboat and made it to the Carpathia. Then she remarried in a Lebanese neighborhood in Virginia. Had it not been for the iceberg that struck and sank the Titanic My family lineage would be different and I wouldn't be here. My family's official toast is 'to the iceberg.'"
jaspersurfer
Forgotten
"My husband's grandfather was one of the 'forgotten soldiers' in Canada. He was a Canadian-born Chinese man who asked the Canadian government to fight for his right to vote and a passport. Even tho he was born in Canada in the 20’s since he was Chinese he was not considered Canadian."
H"e was dropped into the Burma jungle and was told he would likely never return. He was in the 10% that did return. He was given the right to vote, to a passport, and to University."
"His wife is still alive today and my son is named after him."
cowskeeper
Can you imagine?
"My great-grandmother had 13 kids, so she was pregnant for literally a decade. There’s two hundred of us now, all because of this one woman."
CoverlessSkink
"My great grandma had 14 kids. My grandma was the youngest. She died giving birth to my grandma. The oldest child who was like 22 years old raised my grandma. My great-grandfather remarried a woman who had 10 kids of her own. My grandma would tell me stories of them all living together. Can u imagine? 😦."
Content_Pool_1391
Long Ago
american wtf GIF by unimpressionismGiphy"The land my dad was raised on and my cousins still live on was deeded to the family by George Washington as compensation for service during the Revolution. There was a document with his signature on it at the courthouse until a fire destroyed the records a few decades ago."
mustbethedragon
So much land and fortune and HISTORY has been lost due to fire.
Thank God we keep more than paper records now.
Over the Moon
Michael Jackson Dancing GIFGiphy"My second cousin is David Scott who walked on the Moon and drove the moon buggy. My mom does. He was so busy during the time when I was young that he even said later in life that he wished she’d gotten to know more of his family."
Roadgoddess
The Union
"Great-great-great grandfather on my mom's side was working his field in the part of Virginia that split off and became a new state because they didn't want to secede from The Union. Union soldiers came along looking for conscripts and he was a young, able-bodied man so they told him to come with them. He informed them he was a Quaker and thus a pacifist. According to family lore, that discussion went on for a bit but he would not give in. So they shot him and left him there. Good thing he had a couple of kids well before that day."
SpottyNoonerism
Opportiunities
"My great-grandfather was offered a chance to invest in a new invention by a guy by the name of Alexander Graham Bell. He declined, saying at most there would be one telephone per town."
Carson4307
"That is apparently my family too."
"One uncle apparently built a version of a hot water heater and then sold the design to GE for a good sum back then."
"Another uncle was asked if he wanted to be in a photo during his military service. He said no so they raised the flag on Iwo Jima without him in it."
"No idea if any of these are true, at best they are enhanced truths, but for me, I really hope they are true."
Jormungand1342
Underground
"I have a relative who worked for the Underground Railroad and had a price on her head in the South."
dahlia6767
"My uncle was a carpenter. And was doing restoration work on old houses in Yellow Springs, Ohio. Many of those old, historical homes had underground railroad passageways and hidden walls. He got to see and restore many of them. He had photos of some of the work he was doing and I got to see those as a kid. Living in Southern Ohio, we have a lot of rich underground railroad history here."
AddictiveArtistry
Family Empire
blood discussion GIFGiphy"My great-grandfather was the town police chief in the 1920s. His brother was the Mayor. Their cousins ran the casino."
"My family was a smaller version of Boardwalk Empire."
nowhereman136
Wouldn't we all love a show based on our families?
Then that's even more neat family history.
