Remembrance of Things Past

Trending alert:  Sudden feelings of nostalgia for the past – people, place, or things – are no longer considered borderline suicidal or a sign of mental illness.  After nearly 10 years of study, doctors now agree that nostalgia is a good thing because it gives human beings a sense of context, roots and progression in life.

According to an article in today’s New York Times, most people experience some nostalgia about once a week, and nearly half experience it 3 or 4 times a week.  Whew -- I’m sure glad it’s not a sign of an emotional disorder because I’ve been thinking about the past a lot lately.

Feeding the beast of this blog has made me more observant, I think, about my feelings regarding different things I read, see or do on any given day; these serve as pretty powerful triggers for remembering something from my past.  Not all the memories are wonderful, but sometimes they are absolutely so.

I’m particularly nostalgic about my childhood lately as I observe my daughter going through the various stages of shedding her little girl-ness while she morphs into adolescence.  She wants more independence.  So did I at her age, and I got it, too -- being allowed to ride my bike from one part of town to another across a busy highway, or walking 4 or 6 or more blocks by myself to go to a friend’s house.  Trust me; there is no way I will let her do either of these things today; too many weirdoes and sex offenders out there.  

I’ve also been feeling pretty nostalgic about my parents lately, mostly because they are so old and infirm and housebound now.  I remember when they were young and energetic and glamorous which, in my mind, lasted until they were well into their 70s.  When I was a girl, my father looked like a god when he stepped out of the ocean after a strong swim in an even stronger current, and the memory of that brings a smile to my lips.   I’m nostalgic for happy family times on our boat, moored at a beach community for weeks at a time during the summer, with ocean swimming and long beach walks during the day, grilled burgers at night, and gentle waves at night to rock us to sleep.  Wish we could do that today....

...but today, neither my dad nor mother can navigate their home without a walker.

Still, these periodic bouts of nostalgia make me happy even when they make me sad. Remembering the movie of my life helps give it all meaning, while steering me in the direction of choices that matter based on my past experiences.

So here’s to nostalgia…for my carefree childhood, my parents in their prime, my first BFFs and size 6 teenaged self, and that first kiss from my husband, among many, many other wonderful memories.  As long as I can remember that girl from the past, I’m reasonably certain I can handle (most) whatever the future holds.