An explanation of why everyone's life in the ATL was different by lostexpert

Locke telling Jack that he didn't have a son had a lot of people puzzled. What exactly is this place, and why is everyone's life so different?

First of all lets explain what the ATL is. As Christian told is this place does not exist at a specific time. When everyone dies, what goes through their minds is all those "what-ifs". What if I had done something differently? What if things were different for me? Would my life be different. Our last dream is the dream of what our life could have been like. So how is it that those last dreams of ours merge into reality if Jack dies in 2007, but Hurley gets to live for centuries? Well this place as Christian is independent of time.

So what were those last dreams?

- For Jack it was to have a son.

- For Juliet, to become a mother.

- For Sawyer to never become a criminal.

- For Locke to have a good relationship with his father and still have Helen in his life.

- For Hurley to be lucky.

- For Sayid to give Nadia a happy life.

- For Ben to grow up in the real world away from the Island and have a better relationship with his father. Also to have Alexandra's respect.

- For Daniel to become a musician.

- For Desmond to have Widmore's respect.

- For Eloise to have her son.

- For Miles to get to know his father.

I don't have a theory for Claire, Jin and Sun.

Once they experience everything they wanted, they are ready to become one with the light that never goes out. Once that happens they cease to exist.

I guess Lost wasn't so much about the Island and its mysteries as we would all like to believe but about a story. A story with a beginning and with an end. But life goes on once that story is over.