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As noted earlier, Deanna was in a bad place when she decided her choices "didn't matter"-- she had just had an experience of her actions not having an effect on the world, and she seemed to be thinking in a very individual, limited sense: the choices I make will not save a species, or even a few lives, therefore they do not matter. Obviously, the choices Deanna makes over the course of her life impact her greatly, if we assume that they were freely made choices and not unavoidable outcomes. Deanna's story often makes reference to the impossibility of her choosing in a way other than she does-- for example, when Eddie arrives, she feels so powerfully drawn to him as to not be able to stay away. However, there usually seemed to be another option-- Deanna could have given her baby away, or found some other escape from society than the forest, etc.-- and the choices Deanna makes have a significant impact on her own life as well as on Nannie and Deanna's future child. If this level of "mattering" counts, even though it doesn't necessarily alter the course of history or even always of individual lives, then our choices are very important.