Regaining the Past

If one’s own present has been destroyed along with all the effects of the past, and one seeks to regain the same past that has been destroyed, if one expects that same past to recreate itself, then he will land up destroying all that is in the future, merely because that past could not be recreated in the exact way in which it had existed. But if one expects a reconstruction contrary to his expectations, it is possible to build another future and therefore another past as time passes to lead us on to another present. Simply put, you can change the effects of the past and your interpretation of it, thereby re-configuring the past in your head by making amends, but you must be open to novelties. Otherwise you destroy everything.

So most ppl who take revenge, including the protagonist in Memento and the villains in the Star Trek movie, land up falling prey to these false expectations.