There are many things in my short - and finite - life that I'd prefer to forget. Not so many things I'd like to not know, but that's because I know them. I can't choose ignorance, but I'd like innocence to last until I'm mature enough to cope with the knowledge.

Knowledge of some things, say a crime, implies responsibility. I wouldn't like to live forever knowing there was suffering that I could've prevented, esp if I'd had the responsibilites that normally go with knowledge. (Consider why we deny some knowledge to children. Consider also the links between responsibility and privilege.)

Does immortality imply absolute responsibility? Imagine if you'd lived thru the last 2000 years of, say, European history. Ouch. We can try to stand apart from these events and judge them objectively (I'm not sure that we can, of course, esp if we're European), but we have the advantage of not being present during these events, and therefore we may feel no responsibility for them. I certainly look at many of them in horror. A few events, in wonder.

We have some small responsibility for shaping the next 2000 years. Even so, I wouldn't necessarily wish to live thru them. I'm curious about the future, but I see no reason for believe that it will be any less horrific or wonderful than the past.

I'm content with making my short time here as wonderful as possible.