Nostalgia

I’ve always been a nostalgic person. I wanted every moment from my past to last forever in my memory. I remember being seven or eight years old, tying my shoes, and thinking, “This moment will disappear forever.” I told myself I wouldn’t let that happen—even to something as trivial as tying my shoes.

When someone became my friend, I wanted that friendship to last forever. In a way, it felt like defeating death. Of course, I didn’t realize that at the time—I was just a normal eight-year-old kid. But something changed. I became a parent, and suddenly I felt less nostalgic than before. It’s as if I wanted to make room in my mind—and in my heart (come on, it’s not cheesy, it’s just an organ!)—for new memories and a new chapter.

While I was writing these thoughts, I had a dream that pulled me right back into nostalgia. It was like my unconscious mind was trying to fight me, resisting the release of this article. For a moment, I thought, “Maybe I’m still the same nostalgic person I’ve always been.”

But the next night, a follow-up dream solved the mystery. It made me realize I’m simply on a new page of life. My mind was reorganizing things, making sense of the transition. It was all part of the process. Happy ending: I live in the present more than I used to, and I try to grab the little big moments I share with my kids every day.