Nostalgia, Cerebral Sweet Dreams

“What you end up remembering isn't always the same as what you have witnessed.” ― Julian Barnes

The 80's is when I was born. Technically, in 1987. The 90's is 20 years ago. But I still feel it was like only yesterday. Listening to Earth, Wind & Fire or watching The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air easily bring back a lot of good memories. Especially since I'm watching "The Get down" on Netflix these day, it might be the reason why I feel like soaking in nostalgia. Earth, Wind & Fire, Bee Gees, Donna Summer...but wait, here comes the question. Why do I miss those days so much like this, since I was not even born at that time?

I love those music back in the 70'-80's since I was a kid. There was a time when I said "God, I miss the 80's! Music in the 80's is the best!", my friend told me rolling his eyes, "You can not MISS the 80's Asami. How old are you."

But I do feel a warm feeling for things from those past.

If I don't call it as a nostalgia, what would it be?

First of all, why do we feel nostalgia anyway?

This was how I became curious about nostalgia and started researching.

And I found a very interesting article. According to this article,

Nostalgia, compared to control conditions, increases self-esteem as well as perceptions of meaning in life. By allowing people to revisit cherished life experiences, nostalgia boosts positive self-regard and promotes the feeling that life is full of meaning and purpose.

Recent studies further indicate that nostalgia reduces stress and makes people feel energized, inspired, and optimistic about the future. The punch line of all this work is that nostalgia is good for people. Contrary to past assertions, nostalgia does not harm people; it benefits psychological health and well-being.

The article also says,

Situations that trigger negative emotions, feelings of loneliness, and perceptions of meaninglessness cause people to become nostalgic.

In other words, nostalgia is a cerebral activity that makes us get through a hard time in our life. When you are sad, or depressed, your brain tries to cheer you up by making positive feelings. That's why nostalgia usually makes us happy. What a great and kind brain we human beings have!

And I realized this can also explain the feeling I have.

So, nostalgia is like a sweet dream in the end. Because when we feel nostalgic, we basically forget all the bad things that actually happened. Like the way the world goes, we don't always have sunny days. Terrible, sad things happened too in the past. But we don't put a focus on it, since it should be a happy dream.

When I was really into the 80's disco music, or rock music such as Van Halen or Guns N' Roses, I was a teenager. My dad is also a fan of cultures from those days, and we used to talk about the music and movies. It is a very warm memory for me. And maybe that is why those fragments of the time makes me happy.

Yes, I didn't exist when Michael Jackson was dancing with zombies, or when Jimi Hendrix was twanging a guitar with his teeth.

But I can still be nostalgic, because it is a sweet dream of memories.