I had a similar experience, when I was far younger, related to drawing. I remember my teacher pulling up my 'drawing' next to one made by another kid, and asking the redt of the class to choose the best. I think I was about 4, the class unequivocally chose the other kid, and I never tried drawing again in my life. Teachers and professors have huge responsibilities.

I love the first part of your post, where you describe what we do with those memories, because there's no clear "escape" from the consequences of those episodes, much like a butterfly effect of sorts (not sure if you chose the picture for this particular reason - but if you did, very effective). I guess the only way to move forward is just welcome the fact that those experiences shaped us the way we are, and there's not really much to be done about it, except maybe make an effort to change what we don't like.

Thanks for the post and the sharing, looking forward to volume 2 :)