Most of us reach a point in our lives when we wish we could go back to the good old days. But were they even good? Today we’ll talk about that.
Oh, the good old days. We’ve all heard the expression, and, at some point in our lives, said it.
I miss the good old days: when I could trust my neighbor; when things were simpler; when everything wasn’t so bad; when people stood for something.
I’m guessing every generation has uttered this phrase, which makes me question: If my good old days were the previous generation’s not-so-good days, and on and on backwards, then when were the real good old days?
Maybe our reminiscing has more to do with our stage in life than any actual truth. In fact, I suspect the good old days are a myth with which we torture ourselves.
3 Myths of the Good Old Days
#1 – We were happier.
Time can be tricky. Although it can soften past blows as those memories fade, sometimes we only hold on to the positive.
Anyone who had a childhood even close to normal, probably thinks of those years as a fantasy.
I remember spending summers beneath that giant oak, my brother and cousins creating cities in the dirt with Hot Wheels cars and sticks—forgetting my raging insecurity as my emotions and body changed.
I remember spending all those weeks at church and Girl Scout camps—forgetting the pranks, bug bites, and homesickness.
Childhood comes with a certain insulation from the harsh realities of the world around us. It’s understandable that such a period of naivete would seem to be a happier time.
But that time was not really better. I was just more clueless.
#2- We were safer.
Locked doors, stolen identities, and mass shootings … Nowadays, we have to know what our children are doing every minute, so they don’t become prey.
It can seem like the world is falling down around us. But how much of that is because we have more access to news now than ever before? Every headline zings our phone non-stop.
Now I’m not going into statistics. Numbers can be helpful, but I want to talk about the grand scale here—all of time. If each generation’s good old days was the one before, you’d think eventually there would have been a real time to look upon.
Okay. Let’s think back.
What about in our very recent history when a black man couldn’t enter a white restaurant or even look at a white woman without a cross burning in his yard that night—or worse?
What about when a man could hit his wife and children all he wanted, because it wasn’t even a crime? In fact, it was his business and prerogative.
What about the millions of souls lost during the Holocaust?
#3 – We were more moral.
This point is closely linked to the last point, and so I’ve paused our historical timeline for a moment.
We tend to think earlier times, whether in our own lives or in history, were simpler. More wholesome. Good. We imagine the world before us is more like an episode of Little House on the Prairie. Elections have been won on the platform that we need to strive to go back to our good old days.
But the truth is there has never been a time when people didn’t lie, cheat, steal, murder, rape, and pillage.
There hasn’t been a decade in our recent history that was really a time to get back to, and there hasn’t been one before that either.
Because people have never been moral.
More than once, kings were allowed to order every child two and under should be murdered. Can you imagine?
Entire cities were destroyed because of their immorality.
The whole world became so corrupt at one point that God wiped them out with a flood.
The very first son on the planet murdered his own brother.
The first couple on the planet disobeyed the only rule they were given—bringing death to us all.
Anyone exposed to Christianity at all knows there will be an end time where things will get really bad. I don’t know when that time will come, and I’m tempted to look at the hurt and pain around me and wonder if that time is near.
Then I remember Paul’s instruction to the Thessalonians when they feared the day of the Lord had already come:
Press on.
See, the good-old-days myth plays on our desire to fix what’s wrong with us. Except, we forget that we can’t fix ourselves. We humans have never been happier, safer, or more moral.
This is why Jesus died for us.
And thanks to Him, our good old days are ahead of us—never behind.
Do you long for the good old days? What encourages you to look ahead? be sure to share below.
More reading…
- Fear of Aging: Could It Really Be All Bad? from HISsparrowBlog
- 5 Necessary Reminders for a Victim Mindset from HISsparrowBlog
- 4 Dangerous Signs Legalism Has Poisoned Your Faith from HISsparrowBlog
I frequently link up with the following: Grace & Truth with Embracing the Unexpected, Tell His Story with Jeanne Takenaka, and Let’s Have Coffee with Joanne Viola.
So true! We think earlier times were like Little House on the Prairie when in reality they held the Holocaust. I guess perspective is where you live – for some it was Little House on the Prairie and for others it was the Holocaust. And I guess, the same is true today – for some it is peace and safety while others (Ukraine) there is war.
Yes, perspective can wildly different. Thanks so much for commenting, Lisa!
Great post, Ashley, I have said all three of those things lately! I appreciate how you helped us refocus on the truth, that those things rest with Jesus and His work within us, not a nostalgic trip back to the good old days!
May we focus on Jesus and press forward. Thank you for stopping by, Donna!
This is an interesting perspective!
Thank you!
Interesting! Yep, it’s good to reflect on what was but easy to do it with rose-colored glasses. Thanks for this nudge toward honesty and clarity … and looking forward.
Yes, looking forward! Thanks for popping in, Linda!
I’m so glad Jesus fixed me and continues to do so each n every day! Lovely post! I do not long for the good ol’ days but rather look 4wrd to what is yet to be….
Yes! Look forward to what is yet to be…love that! Thanks, Jan!
Wow, this is so poignant. Every generation has its good and bad sides. We tend to remember the good, but the bad was there as well. I’m thankful Jesus gives us good new days to look forward to.
Me, too! Thank you for commenting, Barbara!
This was interesting to sit and think about. Every generation has had its ups and downs. I appreciated the push to keep looking forward and anticipating what is ahead for us all .
Yes, keep looking ahead! Thanks so much for stopping in, Joanne!
When I think about how times are now, I come to think that every time period since the beginning had what they thought was the worst time in history. And for their time period it was. Just like it is for us today. Seems like we’re in end times to me but I know it will become far worse.
Let’s Have Coffee #8
Great point, Paula! Each era has had its ups and downs. Thanks for commenting!
Excellent post, Ashley! I have had similar thoughts. An elderly white man in our neighborhood has a sign in his yard: “I miss the America I grew up in.” While I get what he’s trying to convey (a few other signs in his yard indicate his politics in case anyone wouldn’t know), I’m thinking his Black neighbor across the street does NOT miss that America at all! I’m very grateful that we have grown in our laws and our culture from when I was a child. Yes, we all have good (and bad) memories in our past, but overall, it’s better that we continue to grow more and more like Jesus in loving ALL people, more in the future than we have in the past. Thanks for sharing this at the Grace & Truth linkup!
Yes, may we love each other more and more! Thanks so much for stopping in!
Wow! So very insightful! I love your perspective and the points you make, especially as you expanded on our false belief that the good old days were so much better. For believers, indeed they are ahead!
Yes, yes! For believers, our best days are ahead of us! Thanks so much for commenting!
Good explanation of why Ecclesiastes 7:10 says: “Say not, ‘Why were the former days better than these?’ For it is not from wisdom that you ask this.”
That’s a wonderful verse! Thanks so much for stopping in!
Hi Ashley,
I love the perspective you’ve shared in this post. It’s so encouraging during a dark time! I’ll be sharing tomorrow on the Grace and Truth linkup.
Blessings to you,
Tammy
Thank you so much!
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