I've thought about this for a while, for example would it be be better to lose the ability to walk/see/hear but than losing it, thus going through grief and adapting to new difficulties, but at least experiencing a particular ability or would it be better to never have been born with that ability and thus never knowing what you have been missing ?
Sorrow is really one of the most beautiful emotions a human can experience, I think. There is something very human about feeling a deep sense of loss over so mething truly important to you. i lost someone very close to me recently and I still think about them at night when I'm in bed. My best friend thinks I'm torturing myself but I wouldn't trade that feeling for anything. In a way sorrow can only be born of joy. It's an important part of any experience.
The first thing I thought of was losing a child and in my mind I would never want to go through that kind of pain. I don't think I'd be strong enough to carry on if my nephew (who I help raise) were to die before me. He has brought me so much joy and I love him more than anything or anyone, but if I had to live my life without him I'd prefer to live one where there isn't this giant hole where he used to be...
I would personally rather experience something and then lose it, mostly because it gives you more of an encompassing view on life. If you were born blind, or lived your whole life alone, or never traveled, there would just be a blank space in your mind you'd never be aware of. While the loss can be very significant, it can also be necessary to grow as a person and exposes us to more experiences. It would probably be harder, but result in feeling more alive and having a wider range of experiences.
How true, I'm only 21 years old but I have some friends that have gone through some serious pain. I do believe that this pain may have changed that for the worse in some ways but it has defined them in a way that has also made them better people. It is hard to find the silver lining for some situations but there is always one.