Fail a class, & you carry the failure on your college transcript in perpetuity.

Fall off a cliff that was labeled as hazardous & off-limits to hikers, and -- assuming you survive -- you'll carry the scars on your body & bones (or even impaired and/or lack of mobility) until the day you die.

Post a picture on Facebook/Myspace of you & your friends getting drunk during freshman year at college (i.e. while under the legal age limit), & the picture will follow you around the Internet & real life until the last server in the world bites the dust.

Life isn't a golf game played with the "Mulligan" rule. You can attempt to atone for past mistakes, but you can't expect to avoid the consequences of your actions. Anyone who thinks so is living in "De-Nile", Egypt.