Nostalgia

32 Replies

Definition of Nostalgia by Merriam-Webster

1 : the state of being homesick : homesickness. 2 : a wistful or excessively sentimental yearning for return to or of some past period or irrecoverable condition also : something that evokes nostalgia.

A friend recently wrote about a product I have not thought of in decades.  It is a cheez product sold in a jar. If you remember it from your childhood, then you too may feel a little nostalgic.  I did, so I bought some.  It has been on the market since the early fifties! Now as is so often said, you can never go home again. I actually don’t believe that so I tried a little of that jar of orange stuff on toast and was pleasantly surprised. It doesn’t taste the same. I actually enjoyed it. Would I buy it again? No. Nowadays people read labels. Too much salt, too little cheese. But it started me thinking.

We are all feeling a little nostalgic for times past. Even if it’s only a year. This enforced confinement and social distancing is making us become a little more inventive. We’re finding ways to amuse ourselves. Some of those ways are quite brilliant and some are pretty predictable. Netflix and other streaming opportunities are very popular right now. I find I’m thinking about TV programs from 40 and 50 years ago. I remember them as being inoffensive with a positive message and yet today they would be seen as denigrating and sexist.  They played into a stereotype that today we find unacceptable. I don’t look for the deeper meaning in television. Unless of course I’m watching a program designed to do just that. I just want to be entertained. I want to smile and laugh and be intrigued. I want to guess who did it and their motives. I don’t want to find mistakes so I don’t go looking for them.

There is much in our past that we got wrong. Sometimes, we still get it wrong. But I miss a time when we liked each other. We didn’t go looking for the deeper meaning of the wink across a crowded room or the smile of one child to another. That doesn’t mean we don’t stop looking deeper but sometimes a smile is just a smile. Although now it is harder to see them. But look at the eyes of someone who is smiling and if you look carefully you can see that smile reflected.

The world is in a difficult place right now and not just from the pandemic. Divisions amongst neighbours, angry words and actions are becoming all too common. I want to shake the hand of a stranger. I want to hug a friend. And I want us, all of us, to come together in peace. Just my thoughts on a warm sunny morning.

32 thoughts on “Nostalgia”

  1. Murphy's Law

    Wonderful thoughts on a warm, sunny morning….or any day. I couldn’t agree with you more Pam. I often find myself reflecting on the past. How much simpler life seemed. There wasn’t so much blood and guts in TV shows or movies. Families played board games together and interacted. People in general had more respect for one another. No one had to tell us to “be kind”.

    This isolation is getting to all of us. As scared as we all were when we first heard about Covid-19, I think most of us are more frightened that it’s still here, killing thousands of people every day.

    I too want to hug my family and friends and shake hands with ANYBODY!

    I love your painting. (((💜)))
    Ginger

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  3. Sun Hesper Jansen

    I’ve missed these musings! I find that the briefest encounters with strangers have a profound impact on me these days. My neighborhood used to be rather cold and aloof, but more people smile at you now than used to. And yesterday I had a conversation with a street artist working on a mural that ended up being continued on Instagram. I’ve become a shy person in recent years and it’s interesting that my nostalgia has been for the bold person I used to be. You can’t go back to a past “you” any more than you can go back to a place and find it unchanged – but sometimes (hopefully!) what you do find is someone better.

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  4. Maggie Wilson

    I miss seeing the smiles. I look into the eyes, but I can’t quite tell if the person is smiling or not. I tell people that I’m smiling under my mask. Weird, I guess, for me to do that, but I want to make sure they get the message. I’m smiling.

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  5. joylennick

    Thanks for your nostalgic thoughts, Pam. Shut-in for longer periods than usual…I imagine lots of, mainly ‘mature,’ folk, are day-dreaming about the past. Was our ‘play-time’ longer, or did it seem longer because we had fewer distractions? In my case, no TV until after the war’s end, no mobile, or indoor phones or other technical gadgets…For five years, during the war, there were less people and cars in the streets (waging war (Dad) and working in a factory (Mum) – as in most cases, so it was quieter and more peaceful (in between raids that is..).And, boy, did we appreciate the end of rationing when peace came. One thing I can recall though, was the kindness of neighbours and strangers, and more callers, like the coal-man, the Insurance man the milk-man, and the Tally-man. All belong to history. But three Big pluses: there was more time to read and write, and what a joyful experience it was to escape to the cinema, where one could watch films, other than the overkill or Dystopian, violent, sometimes OTT variety popular today. The above might make me sound like a boring old fart, but I too appreciate all the wonders of the modern age and applaud all the fabulous inventions and medical strides forward. We just need more laughter and humour in our lives, and that’s why I enjoy your little guips, Pam!. Upwards and onwards.. xx

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  6. John W. Howell

    I share your thoughts, Pam, and miss the easy relaxed way we interacted with our fellow humans. Sure we may have misinterpreted communications but there seemed to be plenty of time to correct the situation. Today most things seem so final. Folks hit the streets to protest even before the facts are known. Too bad someone can’t say, “Excuse me but what did you mean by that?” Who knows it may have been only a compliment.

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  8. Sorryless

    You’re right, there was a sense of belonging that is lost now. Now we all go to our caves and binge watch our favorite shows and when we do go out, it’s an event. Okay, the pandemic has only magnified this but . . it was kind of this way to a large degree before this year.

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  11. K.L. Hale

    What a beautiful post Pam. I have hope for our future and understand the nostalgia you write about. When, and if, I get to meet you I’m going to give you a big hug 🤗. As for TV watching~I stream with Netflix, but most of the time on “regular” TV, I’m watching the older shows and movies. When I leave for the office on work days I turn it to Grit so Finley can watch the western shows 🐶🐶😍 xoxo ~Karla

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  13. Mark Lanesbury

    I met nostalgia once…and it just did what yours did, reminded me I have a very selective memory. And then I realised something. That memory is like that because it is what I believe in, the who I am, what I’ve experienced and does in fact build the core of what I want to become.
    So it did taste a bit salty and not the same dear lady, but it did show a belief in who you are my friend and the knowledge that you can change that very thing just by believing it 😀 ❤️ 🙏🏽 🦋

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