Have You Ever Just Wanted to Forget?
Not just move on, but really forget. Wipe the slate clean, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind-style?
Ariana Grande’s album Eternal Sunshine was inspired by the iconic film of the same name, starring Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet, which explores exactly that. In the movie, two people undergo a procedure to erase all memories of each other after a devastating breakup. If you haven’t seen it, it’s a surreal story about love, loss, and the extremes we’ll consider to escape pain. It also explores how memory is deeply tied to identity, growth, and meaning. The big question it asks is: if you could erase the pain, would you? And more importantly: should you?
Fun fact: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind was one of Mac Miller’s favorite films, and many fans believe that fact influenced Ariana Grande’s decision to name her album Eternal Sunshine. While Ariana has cited the film itself as a major inspiration, the connection carries extra significance for those familiar with her relationship with Mac and his appreciation for the movie.
Maybe You Haven’t Been There. Maybe You Have.
Have you ever been so emotionally done with a situation that you’ve half-jokingly found yourself browsing Etsy, wondering if maybe a witch offering cord-cutting rituals could succeed where your own willpower hadn’t?
Not because you actually believe someone else can magically erase your feelings, but because you’ve reached that point where you’d gladly outsource the emotional labor if it meant finally finding some peace.
The funny thing is, the desire behind that impulse is deeply human. We all want relief. We all want to stop carrying what no longer serves us. The real work, though, isn’t done by a ritual. It’s done gradually, through acceptance, grief, and the quiet decision to keep choosing yourself, one day at a time.
The Truth
We don’t have to energetically “cut cords” or forget the past to heal from it.
Healing doesn’t require erasing what happened. It asks us to carry it differently. To loosen its grip, make peace with its place in our story, and allow it to become something that shaped us rather than something that defines us.
Because the truth is that time may soften the sharp edges, but it doesn’t always make them disappear.
Some experiences have a long half-life. Some losses never resolve as neatly as we’d like. Some stories don’t get the ending we imagined or the closure we deserved.
And yet, healing is still possible.
Not because the past vanishes, but because its hold on us can. Even without perfect closure. Even if the story didn’t end the way we hoped it would. We can learn to carry it with a little more compassion, a little less pain, and a little more room for everything that comes next.
And if you can’t zap it away Men in Black-style? Therapy might just be the next best thing.
Here’s to healing without erasing,
LC
Vibe with Me LC 