I am not immune to the affliction called “nostalgia”. It seems many adults are plagued by this irrational desire for the “good old days”. We remember events through the rose tinted glasses of our past. I remember my college days as some of my best. I remember some of the events of those years fondly. I remember some meaningful discussions with friends, and I think of how fortunate I was to have such good friends – people I could trust with my greatest fears, hopes and dreams.
The thing of it is, those people are not part of my life anymore. There are others in my life now. Think about the major events of my life: my wedding, adjusting to married life, the birth of my first child, adjusting to parenthood, buying our first house, coping with the illnesses of loved ones, and experiencing the joy of having your own family. These things were not shared with my college friends. These things were shared with the people in my life now, the friends of today.
I was thinking about all this on my drive home today. I was thinking about a new employee that will be joining my team at work tomorrow. I was thinking about what I would say to this new person. What could I tell her to make her feel welcome, to make her feel at home? It struck me that I felt very much at home, not just at work, but in most aspects of my life. I thought about how lucky I’ve been to have good people around me, people I could share all of this with. I thought about telling her that she was joining a team that was my favorite group of people this side of my family. I don’t think I’ll tell her that. I still don’t know what I’ll say. All I know is that the words rang true in my mind.
The “old days” still seem good, but I don’t wish for their return. I like things as they are now, thank you very much.