If you haven’t known yet, I’m a very nostalgic person. No matter how good my present is, there’s a part of me, that always looks back and loves remembering the good old days.
Same happened a few days ago. The weather was perfect for that – it had been snowing nonstop for the past two days. This kind of weather makes you want to cuddle, feel extra cozy and just get involved into a movie, a game, or in this case, the past. I started watching my old photos, from childhood and early teenage years. And of course, it made me think about not only our past, but present and future as well.
One of the things that I keep noticing is the simplicity of life. And my heart aches, knowing that we’ll never have that, the joy from little thing, that feeling of being united, the happiness over sth “insignificant“. Life wasn’t rich then, every household looked the same, there were no luxuries. But people were so much happier. I don’t talk about me, because, of course, kids are always happy (well in most cases). But from the look of everyone else I saw in the photos, I can tell for sure, that they were happy.
Looking back to your life has so many benefits. Your past can be the perfect teacher for your present and future. It becomes a great reminder, of how things and life should be. You see you true self, way before starting wearing all these social masks in order to please everyone, in order to fit in. You remember your dreams, all your passions and it kind of gives you a wake up slap. You remember the right path for you and it can become the greatest motivation to follow that road.
You see true friendships, true love, you see fun and joy. You see that even our parents, who were adults, had jobs, each had their own lives, still had great friends, people who were always by their sides, on whom they could rely. It reminds you of how a real friendship should be. Not the popular opinion that most people have nowadays, that grown ups don’t have time for friendships and that it’s okay not seeing or talking to your close friends for weeks and months. In reality, we’re all alone, but too afraid to acknowledge and accept that. And these old photos can give you hope and belief in better future, in humanity, because that’s what we had, that’s what we were. And not hundreds of years ago, but just recently.
These memories will show you, that in order to have fun and enjoy your life, you don’t need to have extra luxuries, too much money or social status. You see the beauty of simplicity. You see cozy gatherings, people laughing, dancing, goofing around and not sitting still for hours and fighting over politics or whether vaccinations are good or bad. You see various people, people having different interests, lifestyles, mindsets, but you see a strange kind of harmony between them, because in reality nothing should matter for a good, human relationship. That was the real tolerance or acceptance, not the pseudo-tolerance we have nowadays.
So, if you’re feeling down, having a depression or complaining about your life, I highly recommend rewatching your old memories. It gives you a strange, but good kind of realization, that your life is so full, that it doesn’t suck. Because your life isn’t only this current period, it’s the whole thing. And the whole thing is great. With happy and sad moments, with changes, new things, lots of people coming and going, lots of events happening.
Last but not least, by recalling your past, you start appreciating the present more. You know why? Because when you look back, you mostly see the good things, the fun times. You think, that you were so happy, because there was nothing really to be unhappy about. All your problems that you had years ago seem so insignificant and little. It makes you want to go back and slap yourself, telling not to worry, because years later it won’t matter.
And you understand, that the same is happening now. You torture yourself with some “problems“, that probably exist just in your mind, you don’t appreciate what you have, thinking that it’s not enough. Remember, that years later, when you watch the photos of this period, you’ll feel the same way and pity that you didn’t enjoy life as much, as you could, that you weren’t grateful for what you have now. Don’t let that happen. Live with good memories, and not regrets. That’s all.
annmary0723 
I don’t like to look back, but after your blog, I wanted to look at old photos๐๐
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let’s watch them together โค๏ธโค๏ธ
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It sounds like your childhood was quite different than mine. Although I do have some happy memories and am glad I grew up at a time and in a neighborhood where children played outside, even in the dark, played games outside, interacted with the whole neighborhood, along with some great vacations, I saw the conflicts even as a child. I had interactions with spirits and other dimensions and had to hide that as my parents denied it all and doctors tried to label it mental illness. I grew up ill in hospitals and ER’s. I saw black and migrant Latino children made fun of and ostracized. I saw classism and political divides. And I grew up in the US. I saw fistfights between the “in crowd” and those they judged. I grew up horribly rejected at times, with a 5th grade class club against me, no one talking to me, and in learning to hide my true self I experienced deep depressions and suicidal thoughts. So in my experience, things weren’t any better then than now, other than perhaps it was more hidden, not talked about.
I have certainly learned from my past, so I do agree that it is valuable to look back. And my daily work I do and have done for years, is focused on helping create a better future for all. At the same time, I keep a gratitude journal daily, have for years, and express gratitude for the simple things that I appreciate in the now.
I’m glad you found peace in looking back. I treasure my photo albums!
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I’m so sorry about your hard childhood! I’m glad though, that you still try to see the good moments, and I think difficult experiences make people much stronger! I grew up in Armenia, and even though our country was really poor and not developed at all, we didn’t have such big problems and issues. I guess it’s true that every country has its pros and cons
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I don’t know much about your country but I would imagine it had many of the same issues I noticed as a kid, but you just might have missed them. I know that most of the children I grew up with didn’t notice these things either as they were either the ones being racist, classist, making fun of others, and part of the club that didn’t speak to me the whole year or just unaware of what was going on.
I grew up remembering other lifetimes and how I was treated in them for standing up for truth and light and against injustice. So I came into this lifetime aware and sensitive to other dimensions as well as the dysfunctions that exist.
Luckily I still enjoyed paper dolls, reading, and the many indoor and outdoor games we played, along with swimming and sports etc. So it wasn’t all bad. I just don’t long for the past or see it as better or more simple as your experience.
I keep in mind in meeting all people that everyone experiences things differently, even those that perhaps were in the same experience at the same time ๐
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I like watching photo albums. That’s funny ๐
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yes me too! I still print photos and put them in albums, because it’s much more fun, than watching on computer ๐
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Hard to imagine someone so young thinking about “the good old days!” ๐
But most of us do, even younger than you.
Only remember, “โThe past is a place of reference, not a place of residence.โ (Michael King, Kingโs Gospel Online)
Even Billy Joel sang, “You can linger too long in your dreams…You know the good ole days weren’t always good and tomorrow ain’t as bad as it seems.”
โค๏ธ&๐, c.a.
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haha yes, I strangely have an old soul, always complaining about nowadays’ trends and generation like a grumpy old lady๐ I do agree with you! We shouldn’t live in the past, but we can gain lessons and good energy from it!
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very true. Memories shape you, little by little. The good and the bad.
They also shape the way you look at the future.
(The latter is a bit bleak right now, but new memories should emerge…)
Cheers.
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that’s true! thank you!
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