Nostalgia is a paradoxical thing. The emotion in itself seems beautiful, ethereal, almost magical. A light is cast on even the darkest days of the past. Dull moments are given a specific energy, a feeling I struggle to explain. And though the complex beauty of this emotion may be unique only to me, I do think most people have a way of lingering in the past. Nostalgia can be good in moderate amounts, but when one begins to live in memories, I believe there can be no good outcome. Though I reminisce about many a good time, I often find myself wishing I had acted differently in many scenarios.
I do revisit my past often, contemplating what I have done and what I should have done. Nostalgia can only skew reality so much. The truth of our actions does come to us all eventually, and that is when the mental torture begins- when you look at yourself, and all you see is a reflection of your past mistakes. We have all made mistakes, and I say that with confidence. There is not a single person on this Earth who has acted perfectly in every scenario. But as time passes, it becomes more evident that living only for the past is unbearable. The only logical course of action is to move forward. When you find yourself constantly thinking about what has already happened, you miss what is currently happening and what might happen. This has become incredibly important in my own life. Next year, I will be a senior, and shortly after, I will be in college, making decisions that will impact the rest of my life (or so I am told).
History is important; it carries around old lessons and other emotions that may only lurk. But what about this moment, today, or tomorrow? If we are so focused on the past, how will we make our way into the future? I guess what I’m trying to say is that at the end of the day, time only moves forward. Why torture yourself by reliving what has already happened again and again when you could instead focus on what may be? Concentrating on who you once were can be revealing and possibly beneficial, but isn’t it more important to look at who you can become instead?
I believe this is especially important for my fellow juniors. We are about to enter our final year of high school, and rather than looking back at what has already happened, we should instead look to what we can make happen.
