Is nostalgia happy or sad for you?

[msincogneato]

Lately every time I get nostalgic and look at old photos, think back, etc. it makes me sad. Which then makes me even MORE sad, as those memories used to always bring me joy.

Is that a function of age, I wonder?

How about you: when you get nostalgic, does it make you happy, or sad (or, I guess, both?)

 

[CallMeKate]

Good question... and I'll have to say that it makes me sad. I don't think it's an age thing because it's always been like that for me. The "that was so good but I'll never be able to go back" always strongly outweighed the good feeling the memory itself should be bringing.

 

[Llynn]

Mostly sad these days.

 

[Jace]

Sometimes happy..to what it is..
Then again, sometimes..sad

 

[win231]

Both for me, as well.
Sometimes I'll watch reruns of the Johnny Carson show & it's sad to think that all the guests & Johnny are gone.
Especially when some of the guests died young.

 

[hearlady]

Both.

 

[Gaer]

It's like watching a movie of a past life.
It's a tenderness and a love. it's a thankfulness.

 

[officerripley]

Sad; always.

 

[Teacher Terry]

Definitely happy.

 

[Bella]

 

[squatting dog]

I guess it goes both ways, plus a third. Looking at old photo's and thinking of all the people that have passed through my life makes me sad, happy, and even mad at times.

 

[Pinky]

Usually sad ..

 

[jujube]

I miss what has passed but I get pleasure in remembering the good times.

 

[Warrigal]

I have discarded all past painful memories and I am enveloped in many wonderful memories of people, places and experiences that enrich me every day.

 

[Jamala]

Nostalgia is delightfully happy for me...
I get sad only when I remember my Mother and Father but I talk to them and know I shall meet them again one day.

 

[seadoug]

It makes me sad in the sense that I will never get those times back, but I'm now in a much better place in my life so sometimes it just makes me smile.

I've been cleaning out old pictures for the last week and have sent some via Facebook to my high school girlfriend (who I still keep in touch with) and a couple of my friends from the 80's. We just look back on those days fondly and laugh.

I found a note from my sister-in-law from 1991, before she was married and had 4 kids. She mentioned how she had a poster of Scott Baio. She is now in her mid-50's and we vacation with her and her kids, who are ages 16-24. I also found a note from my partner's mother when she was dying of cancer thanking us for the flowers we sent her. This was also from the early 90's. I laughed and I cried.

 

[Capt Lightning]

Some things from the past make me sad or angry, but more often they disappoint me. Places I used to like have changed beyond recognition. Friends and I have gone our separate ways and now have little in common. I think it's best not to be nostalgic, but keep looking forward and find new experiences.

 

[Rossana]

Both sad and happy.

 

[Fyrefox]

Nostalgia is for me a bittersweet experience, carrying elements both happy and sad. Memories can sustain or torment you in your present realities, which is why you must entertain them selectively and wisely…

 

[JustDave]

Almost always happy. I've had a good life, with good memories.

 

[Chet]

"Always forward, never back" someone told me. When I downsized I threw away a lot of old photos, but that gives me mixed feelings too.

 

[Jackie23]

Both sad and happy.....as life is.

 

[Lewkat]

Both. There are many nostalgic memories that truly make me smile.

 

[charry]

i miss my youth , when i lived at home with my parents .
music makes me sad now,
and my life now , makes me sad.....
so yes, it seems everything makes me sad at the moment .....

 

[charry]

in 1994...my first grandson was born.....i was so happy, but then i got a phonecall from my sister to say, my brother in law (who i adored) as i had known since 5yrs old had Died....so that made me sad .....so i was in between.....So many emotions that day...
I went to see, my new grandson, when straight up the motorway 400 miles away to the Funeral....