“Those who ignore history are bound to repeat it!” Building on that idea, I invested some time in exploring the emotional aspects of past experiences. I’m considering now that it’s not just a “learn-from-your-mistakes” idea, but rather a “re-live those emotions” approach.
When our family was younger, I purchased a well-used, 1980’s VW camper. The body and the interior were well kept, but the motor needed more attention and money than I could afford to give it. Nonetheless, for two summers, we had wonderful adventures in it.
We named it the Galileo, in honour of the noble scientist and of our love of science fiction. (A shuttle name from Star Trek). It had everything needed for camping in the lower, middle-class: a fridge, a sink, a closet/cupboard, 2 beds (one over the rear engine and one in the pop-up canopy), swiveling captains’ chairs and a folding table. All of our keepsakes could be safely stowed away while we explored the camping life; a treasure chest on wheels.
The connection we felt to it was instantaneous; a mixture of child-like wonder and a sense of meeting the unknown. Like many vehicles today, we sat high, but for us it was a special perch; more like a Disney ride.
It didn’t like speed and pure will powered Galileo up some steep hills. There was no air conditioning either, but we didn’t sweat the small stuff en route. Rather we were drenched in the experience. Everywhere we went, smiling faces greeted us. People seemed to connect easily to the vehicle or to what it represented.
Trying to articulate the sensation today, I’m limited to tangible factors: waking up snug and in the wild, breaking down on the side of the highway, eating lunch in our high perch. The list simply provides the logistics of the memory. How do I convey the blended aspect of that history? I’m confident you have similar past events that when recalled, bridge the heart and the mind. How do you describe the sentimental aspects? When you spend time recounting, does it re-stir the emotions as well?
Those emotions are one of the few things we can carry across time. When we do, they enrich and inform our present day. I think it’s a worthwhile goal, purposely applying those emotions to my current state; connecting nostalgia to hope.
“Those who embrace the past, may benefit from it.”
Hopeful Nostalgia
I felt it then. I hope for it now.
That lifeline that sets my feet on solid ground.
I smiled back then. I pray for it now.
Connections that pull me off the island.
I laughed it off then. I pick at the scar now.
My failure that laid it all bare, that uncovered the essentials.
I lived for it then. I live for it now.
A nudge into the infinite that keeps me here.
Brian Toner October 2019