Gen Z has always been notorious for having periodic fixations on different things, whether it’s a TV show, a fashion trend, or something we found funny on TikTok. But one of the things this generation just can’t seem to let go of is nostalgia. We have a particular attraction to longing for the “good old days.” But what makes this interesting is that oftentimes, the “good old days” are times we never experienced.
Fleetwood Mac, Billy Joel, and Queen constantly wind up in our playlists, transporting us to a time when all those songs were the number one hits that everyone heard on the radio. Movies like Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, The Breakfast Club, and all the teen-centric, blockbuster rom-coms seem to say “don’t you forget about me” and give us a glimpse into what life might have been like for people back then. And we always seem to circle back around to the fashion trends of years that we weren’t even around for. The baggy jeans, layers, and graphic tees from the 2000s always find their way from our parents’ closets to ours.
In a way, a sense of yearning comes with reminiscing about these times. Gen Z was born into a time so different from what people once knew, especially when it comes to social media, that we can’t help but wish things were simpler. So in the end, we end up clinging to these movies, TV shows, songs, and fashion trends to make it feel like things can be simpler for us, too.
COVID-19 happened at such a pivotal time in our development that a lot of us didn’t have the chance to form our own “era” per se. So instead, we find comfort in the things we know. COVID had a way of making us so afraid of change that sometimes, what we know works ends up working the best.
But the takeaway from all of this is that we spend so much time occupying ourselves with things of the past that we never care to appreciate the times we are in right now, where we have the chance to make change, and go to “infinity and beyond.”
Whether it’s the football games, school dances, or even the times you spend laughing with your friends in class, every one of us has had our Perks of Being a Wallflower moment. Yet, there’s a certain feeling that comes with being in high school, something none of us can quite name, but will always remember.
In the moment, being a teenager can seem like the worst thing in the world. But it’s these years when we can find the simplicity that we have been searching for through our fascination with the time capsules that are the old movies and songs we love so much.
So, seniors, as we enter the end of life as we know it, try to enjoy that simplicity as much as you can. Take time to be in the moment. Appreciate the friends you have now, and spend as much time with them as you can. Take advantage of your last chance to be “young, wild, and free.”
Take it all in now. Because some day, you’ll be looking back at these simple moments and become nostalgic for them instead.
