Old is Gold

As children, we grow up so eager about the future, feeling exited about the time we live in and loving everything about it. Then at some point we lose all the excitement and feel like we were born too late. That the past was much better than the present, our childhood's future. We feel that the golden age was ages away. That today's world is such an awful place, that it was much much better years before we were born. But what if I tell you that people who lived through the times you think are better had also hated their present and wanted to live in older days? What would that mean to you?

First let's make one thing clear, was there really a Golden Age? Had been there a time when everyone was happy, doing what they do best, having an equal right to stand out, being able to live a humane life, even if they had the smallest of jobs? Since I have only lived in this world, I don't have an answer that I'm sure of. It's been said that the Old Ancient Egyptian Dynasty at an early stage did bring the country to a Golden Age. It's been said that the Greek Empire at its earliest stages had also had a Golden Age. It's been said that the Roman Empire at some stage had also lived a Golden Age. It's been said that China has lived a Golden Age at the time of Confucius. Whether this is true or not, this I cannot prove, but we do have history, we do have teachings, we do have diaries of these times that prove that there were times much better than now.

My point is that even if golden ages didn't really exist, we do know that there were times that were much better than today. There were also other times, closer ones, that when compared with the present are good, but when compared with older times would be bad bad times. Yes, this all might be true. Yes, our present might not be a good time. And yes, the fact that people of the past also feel that their past was better might mean that the world is deteriorating. And yes, in fact if you give it some thought, it is in some way.

But is there another reason for people to feel this way? That the grass is always greener on the other side, maybe? To throw the blame on the world instead of blaming one's self for not doing your duties? To give one's self an excuse for not being the best you can be? To give one's self an excuse to not try to live a better life, a happier life, to live up to your dreams?

The thing is that the past might have been better, and the world might be deteriorating, but this is not an excuse for any of us to waste lives crying over the present and to yearn for a past. If the past has been better, then we should try to make our future as good as it was. We know the past not in order to live in it, but to learn from it. Yes, there is much to learn from the past, no not everything that is old is obsolete. We might have our great technologies, we might know a lot more about science, our brains might have evolved than back then, but are we happy? From the suicide rates, in the best of countries, I think not. So why not learn from the past their timeless values that kept them happy and alive? We might know the what and the how much more than others knew in the past. But when it comes to why, do we really know? We might have a lot more knowledge than they did, but are we really educated? Even those with PhDs from the best of universities, are they educated?  Education is not knowing, it's acting upon knowledge, how many of us are educated? Is everyone living to do what they do best? Are YOU doing what you do best? ....If you're longing for a past that you have never lived, then you'd better stop complaining about your present, and try to learn from the past and apply in the future. Otherwise, you're only finding an excuse to be unhappy.