Sunday, September 16, 2012

Nostalgia and its Awesomeness


The other day I was looking through some quotes online, and I stumbled upon a quote about nostalgia. It talked very negatively about it, and I was rather surprised, as I have always viewed nostalgia as a beautiful thing. I decided to search for some more nostalgia quotes and I was astonished to find that a surprising amount of them were negative! Some included:

“Nostalgia is a seductive liar.” – George Ball

“Nostalgia is always doomed and dooming.” – Sherman Alexie

“My life is very exciting now. Nostalgia for what? It's like climbing a staircase. I'm on the top of the staircase, I look behind and see the steps. That's where I was. We're here right now. Tomorrow, we'll be someplace else. So why nostalgia?” – Jeanne Moreau

“The Greek word for "return" is nostos. Algos means "suffering." So nostalgia is the suffering caused by an unappeased yearning to return.” – Milan Kundera


I don’t know about you, but this rubs me the wrong way. Nostalgia is a beautiful thing! All we have in this world is our experiences. Just because nostalgia is associated with the past doesn’t mean we shouldn’t reminisce and appreciate what used to be! I find that people tend to idolize the past, and honestly, good for them! It shows that people learn to appreciate the things that they never did; and I think that is an amazing thing.

I often recall certain experiences as a kid. I remember playing with my Bionicles and other toys. I remember Beyblades, Yugioh, Hey Arnold, The Big Comfy Couch, Pokemon, Digimon, and all the other television shows that I loved and adored. The best days of my life were the simple ones when my childhood best friend and I would just run around on the playground and play tag. I remember making friends. I remember making enemies. I remember smiling. I remember crying. I remember so much, and I am happy that I can look back and appreciate the times I used to have, good and bad.

A few weeks ago, I stumbled upon an old obsession of mine: my Gameboy SP. It was a great find, and I actually started playing it again. I was swept away with feelings of nostalgia, remembering the countless hours I used to spend on that glorious machine. It was an amazing feeling, remember who a younger Zac used to be; recalling and enjoying the experiences of mine that used to just be my every day life.

As I’ve mentioned already, the only thing that any individual actually has in this world is their experience. So it is important to reminisce and appreciate what used to be.

That is all for today. Thank you for reading! Have an awesome day! OVER AND OUT!


2 comments:

  1. There's a difference between reminiscing and idolizing. A mid life crisis is the ultimate form of nostalgia. When you stop living today because you pine for yesterday. A casual pleasant memory is fine, but to seek the time past incessantly is most likely what those quotes decry.

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  2. Hmm...you bring up a very good point. You are right in saying that there can be an extreme to the reminiscing of the past. Obviously, full obsession of the past is not a very good thing, as you may lose sight of the present and future. However, my point was that it is always good to look back to the past, as one's experiences are something they should hold dear. You do bring up a good point though. Thank you for contributing :)

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