THE CASE FOR PRO-ACTIVE NOSTALGIA

"Cogito ergo sum" is one of the most memorable lines in Western philosophy. Immediately after, "Make my day." Clint Eastwood uttered the second, Renee Descartes the first. In stating "I think therefore I am," Descartes helped Western philosophy see mind and body (our state of consciousness and our physical brain) as separate.

As you age, you're willing to forget Descartes and use George Eliot instead: "Adventure is not outside men; it is within." Or to put that another way: "I dream therefore I am."

Look, older folks dream a lot, Night dream, day dream, afternoon dream. We reject Oscar Wilde's snippy "Nostalgia is heroin for old people." Younger folks have the bodies that can go almost anywhere; however, older folks have the nostalgia to go absolutely anywhere. And before you knock it, wait till you're old enough to try it.

Oh, but not just nostalgia for nostalgia's sake...

Like Alice slipping down the rabbit hole, nostalgia should be an adventure. A journey with a purpose. Something like Scrooge's three spirits who took him to times and places from which he could learn. When we re-visit our old neighborhood, our class reunion, our honeymoon, don't we find something new each time to carry back with us?

So -- during this nostalgic mistletoey time of year -- take the time to discard Descartes. And waste Wilde. Instead, find the courage to re-visit your best self. Wherever and whenever that may be. You may have something to teach yourself...