A Closer Look at the ‘Good Old Days’

Probably more so than ever before people have said over the past nine months how much they miss the “good old days.”

In this case I think it’s more about missing the pre-Covid times when we seemingly did whatever we wanted to do.  In some ways the time between mid-March and now almost feels like a sentence of some kind for bad behavior.

I’ve always felt the term “good old days” was a generational one because I would guess 25 or 50 years ago there were probably those who thought decades earlier were better than the times they were living in. I know quite a few people in their 70s, 80s and 90s who insist that times were better in their youth but in truth I think they really mean life was simpler.

Clearly everything moved a bit slower and that’s partly because we didn’t have the conveniences we now take for granted.  Back a few decades ago you patiently stood in line to cash a check at your bank or even buy a cup of coffee.  Now we impatiently use a drive-thru or ATM and if you wait more than a couple of minutes you feel like you’re going to have an anxiety attack.

Some of you likely have somewhat fond memories of when dinner time was family time in which everyone sat at the table and recounted the day’s events whether it be work, school or play. Now eating together has become a “once in a while thing” and really who needs to talk with one other when you can simply text throughout the day about what’s going on.

I do believe strongly that what happens is as you get older you become more nostalgic and tend to look back at life with rose-tainted glasses.  Yes things were much simpler and slower and people were more respectful but in truth life in the 50s, 60s, 70s and yes even the 80s was far from perfect.  Women were expected to raise families and not have careers, minorities were often treated as second-class citizens and accepted sexual behavior left many as outcasts even within their own family.

Life moves too fast today (of course before Covid) but it also comes with benefits most could not dream of and if you think and look objectively you will likely realize that the “good old days” might not have been quite as good as you though they were.