They say, “Don’t look back you’re not going that way.” But recently that’s all what I seem to be doing. Growing nostalgic day by day. As the world modernizes and memories get sucked out of the good life we now speak of as a tale.
I’m a 90’ies kid, well not so much of a kid now but well you get the point.
I have a really bad memory yet none of the memories from back in the days have dwindled. I remember getting excited over the little things. I grew up playing all kinds of things, from football, games with poor graphics yet we had the best of times to, card games and whatnot. I remember going to the video renting centers giving IDs of my brother’s and sister’s to get a movie on a VHS. I remember going through titles handwritten on the front. Playing the VHS was another story when it wasn’t working. Dusting of the player and slipping papers in and so. My favorite was the cassette. The struggle to get to the part of the song you want to listen to. And then you have to flip for another side. And again when the fast-forward ain’t working well there’s always the pen/pencil or the pinky finger on the rescue. I was the last child so my brothers and sisters had much of the fun. And from what I hear them talking they had the craziest childhood and I envy them for it. And when I look at the kids these days I truly feel sorry for their loss. Yet a loss they were never fortunate to have in the first place.
I am in my 20’ies yet I feel so old. Well songs don’t make sense anymore, lyrics are all about things that won’t matter in years from now and people wouldn’t mind. I mean, I listen to old songs or songs with such touch still now. Songs my brothers and sisters used to play when I was just a kid, songs I have grown into and I will grow old to. There are songs that I really enjoy yet that I wouldn’t mind not listening to. I mean everything about the old times is just too good to be thrown out in time. Friendships are now based on vibes. And love? Ow that things is dead and gone. I think the main reason is because life has become simpler and so people don’t bother about putting so much effort in maintaining and creating ties. I remember having my first crush. Now that I think of it, it was the most honest moment ever. From passing notes in classes to waiting to see what they may have written on the silly “autographs” students used to make, and because we didn’t mobile phones back then nor any social media freely like nowadays, the only way of getting to know each other was actually talking to each other. And that was not easy, but because it takes all that to create a relationship later on, whatever was built then lasted longer. But now, well, texts have taken over confessions, emojiis- emotions, social medias- social lives, selfies- selves, and in general whatever is built now is just a single button away to throw it all out. Nothing seems to matter and not everyone really minds. All the kids have outgrown themselves. They have outlived themselves. They rush into life and then run out of life to live later on.
These days, all kids talk about is status. Looks to start with. What’s trending and what’s not. Celebrities. Where to spend Saturdays at, and of course any kid not part of the group literally has no life. It would take a lot for them to be satisfied with their days. School life has got a whole other context now. What was cool back in our days is now so lame. Nowhere close to their “cool”. They don’t have much to get excited over as they live ahead of their days.
Even parenting is on another level. It’s more of breeding and not parenting. Most parents are show offs, showing off with their kids. There are only few that truly look after their kids and how they spend each day trying to connect with their kids. But most are now material raising their kids, sending them to the best schools, providing them brand clothes and shoes, and technology. Going back to the days I honestly don’t remember the places they used to take me to, but I remember all the good times I have spent with my brothers and my mother. I remember making our own toys recycling old broken stuffs. They have given me something that would matter even when I have outgrown my memory.
That’s why I am so proud and grateful that I am a 90’ies kids. For still, the simplest things delight me. And most importantly I once had a life before technology took over and jeopardize my way of living. Now memories are Facebook statuses, Friendships are groups you’re added to.
Here’s a collection of memories from the 90’ies kids that didn’t make it through this generation.
-How our perception of the other sex changed from primary to senior classes.
-The excitement of using pens after primary school was over.
-Growing up wearing your elder’s clothes
-Science class, we used to have turns reading a section before the whole class and Reproduction was the worst topic.
-Passing notes when the teacher isn’t looking, eating behind benches.
-The struggle with crushes. There was this game where you cross out common letters from your names, yours and your crush’s name, and you add them up and see how many percent they love you or you love them.
– Nintendo, waterful ringtoss, cap gun, disco watches, afterschool shows like jim and jam, detective bogey…
– Friday afterschool playing with the whole neighbourhood kids
– waiting desperately for New Year for new clothes
– Autographs, questions for the whole class to fill and an excuse to get “home” phone numbers.
– calling some number so many times just to hear their voices and hang up without saying a word, they wouldn’t know anyways.
– The cool kids, with the coolest lunchboxes, bags, pencil bags, snacks and juice
– “Talaq Film” , TV Africa- savannah, The guilt, Acapulco, Maya, Young and the restless, Loving , MacGyver, Jack and the fat man….
– Overalls, One pant leg rolled up, neon wind breaker
– The paper fortune teller
– Paper bag book covers, covering your books at the beginning of every year
– Gameboy, The windows 1995 solitaire deck, Monopoly
– Macarena dance
– summer, playing hide and seek in the house.
– Feasting in circles with the other neighborhood kids and cousins
These are just to name the few of the many. Celebrating the good old days that will probably last longer than the generation that lived through them, let us all take a moment to share the best of our days. Cheers to the 90’ies.
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