Illustration by Ana Hinojosa.

I’m not a person who likes to dwell on regrets and roads not taken, but sometimes I can’t help but imagine what would happen if I were able to travel back in time and do X instead of Y. If time travel were possible, though, there would be so many factors to consider. What about fate: Would you still end up in the same place because it was meant to be? Or what about the butterfly effect: If you went back to change one thing, could it set off a chain reaction with unintended consequences?

For this week’s creative prompt, I want you to change the past. What thing in your life (or perhaps in the larger world) would you do differently? Create a written or visual piece based on how you would make that change and what impact it would have. It could result in a quiet, personal reflection or a wild adventure. Let this new, different path lead you and send the result—along with your first name, last initial, age, and city/state—to [email protected] with the subject line “Creative Prompt” by Monday, December 19th at 6 PM EST.

Last week, we asked you to transport yourself to another era. Here is where you went…