Nostalgia is one of many intriguing human conditions.
As I try to understand the concept of nostalgia and why our society is so drawn to the past, I continue to draw a lot of ?questions that a simple Google search can’t ?answer.
When did we start ?romanticizing the notion that the past is somehow better than the present ?moment?
And why are we so ?fixated on replaying the past, as if we are somehow going to relive or change the memories that we have already made?
As I think about ?nostalgia, I am reminded of Woody Allen’s film, “Midnight in Paris.” The entire movie romanticizes the notion of nostalgia as we are transported back to the 1920s with a protagonist who is desperately trying to escape his bitter reality.
As the movie’s plot thickens, we begin to ?realize the protagonist’s nostalgia is simply a denial of his painful present.
He is unable to move on from the past, wasting away his time from ?the now.
Apparently, humans aren’t the only ones ?catching the nostalgia bug.
Turning the page back to 1800s, we are now ?being reminded of a heartwarming story about a man’s best friend, ?Greyfriars Bobby.
Here’s how the story supposedly goes.
When his master passed away, this dog spent the rest of his life, 14 years, ?sitting on his master’s grave. Though his loyalty is truly touching, this dog could have been living ?his life.
He could have been waddling around and shaking his tail. He could have been eating Scooby Snacks and playing frisbee in the park or rolling around in the grass.
Instead, he got stuck in a moment. And so did ?society when it heard this story.
This dog’s bark left a lasting impression, as his tale was made into a book and subsequently a movie. This dog even has a bar named after him.
Seriously though, nothing says drink up like doggy depression.
In the end, Google wasn’t able to adequately answer my questions about nostalgia.
Instead, I decided to come up with some ?answers of my own.
It’s okay to occasionally revisit moments as long as you recognize what has passed is gone forever.
You see, we are going to have successes and we are going to have failures, but our true glory is we will ?continue to live our lives no matter what happens.
So I guess what I’m ?trying to say here is, if you too have been hit with the nostalgia bug, maybe it’s time that you stop living your life like it’s some sort of ?on-demand movie.
Stop hitting the rewind button. Instead, just ?press play.
kajsingh@indiana.edu
