Nostalgia's Land
How easy it is to let time fly while forgetting things you promised yourself you’d do. One day, a guarantee was made to go back and visit more often, to call once a week, to do more artwork, to go out and experience more of the world; but eventually, we forget. Time mocks our dreams and plays with our intentions. Of course, we have a tendency to throw around promises we have no chance of keeping because the spirit of the situation takes over to control our words. The heart is in it but the mind knows the likelihood is minimal for success. This is nothing to beat yourself up over since it happens to everyone and is just a result of busy lives and poor memory.
Despite it all, nostalgia’s impact has a way of reminding you of your lighthearted mistake. You remember you hadn’t been to visit your family in over five years. You walk around the hunting garage at night while thunder clashes on and lightning flashes through the window. The clipboards full of family photos draw you towards them where you see yourself in a myriad of photos in varying ages. Each picture hits a different part of your heart and you smile and laugh and enjoy and share the memory flushed forward. Is it not tinted with sadness, though? Isn’t nostalgia a double edged sword of desirable beauty? We want to be reminded of the good times when the cares of the world didn’t haunt us like they try to do now. Sometimes that puts things into perspective where priorities can be rearranged for better happiness. Sometimes it reveals times that were better than times now.
I think it’s good to remember and experience it over again. There is power in an old photo that was taken with intent to preserve emotion. There’s power in a song you hadn’t heard in years that’ll transport you to that Halloween moment bobbing for apples and dripping face-paint all over your costume. There’s power in nostalgia and I hope it’s beneficial and not damning when it hits you. I hope it reminds you to be grateful of your past and your current situation. I hope it allows you some clarity to visit your family more often. I hope it creates greater patience where it’s needed because your priorities have realigned. Mostly, I hope you get to look back with smiles and cherish how far you’ve come and the fun you’ve had along the way.