NOSTALGIA - As I frequently remind my audiences, a man who remains rooted in the past is unable to fulfil his role in the present. The genuinely creative person doesn't squander his thoughts on issues that are no longer relevant: he's absorbed in the here and now. Retrospection is as pernicious as any other addiction. Let's not be sentimental about the affliction. What we commonly refer to as nostalgia is just an affectionate word for a compound of senility, surrender and regret. Those who indulge in it inhabit a realm of ghosts. We obviously refer to memory for information, but it's important not to distort what we find there. I've given various lectures on this topic at Drumfeld Public library. On each occasion, I've been thanked by individuals stricken by the spontaneous realisation that their entire lives are still dictated by incidents that should have long ceased to matter. What purpose does it serve to dwell on the mortifications of childhood? If I was so inclined, I could, recount the daily lunchtime ritual of being pelted with my classmates' unwanted sprouts or the trauma of being dragged from Karen Gardner's laundry basket. “My life was ruined!” I could wail. Instead I'm grateful to have been offered the opportunity to persevere. There are storms over the course of anybody's life. We measure someone's character by his ability to weather them.

 

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