The Good Old Days..

I often hear people reminisce about the “good old days”. Please don’t get me wrong—I also reflect on certain periods of my life when things seemed perfectly aligned. But in my more rational moments, I realize there are truly no “good old days” that are universal to everyone.

As a young teenager in the 1970s, I worked for my grandfather, who made it clear that he was none too impressed with the present world, and that his “good old days” were the days when horses were the main mode of transportation. Oddly, as I matured, I realized my “good old days” were the times that I spent with Grandad, working on the farm.  So, paradoxically, the times when he saw the world going to Hell were the very times I consider the “good old times”.

Today, lots of the older generation does not understand the popular music or culture of today’s younger generation. However, they fail to realize that their parents were likewise confused and worried about the then-younger generation who were fans of Elvis Presley gyrating on the stage, or about those who were growing out their hair to emulate the Beatles and other bands of that age.

Ultimately, the world is always changing, and what seems today like the end of civilization as we know it will become the norm tomorrow. What seems like the worst of times for some will become the “good old days” for others.

The goal for us is to try stay focused in the here and now, and while it is pleasant to reminisce about the past, it is not healthy to live in the past. If you look around, you can find all kinds of wonderful things going on and realize that today is one of the “good old days”.