Photo by Lawrence Krowdeed on Unsplash
So, I promised a summertime trilogy, but who doesn’t like to get a bonus? And here it is. Your bonus track, also called Summertime, by New Kids on the Block.
For those of you familiar with the song, not only might you be showing your age, but also you might be wondering what the song could possibly have to do with wellbeing. Now that’s a very good question! The song is about a guy’s summer obsession with a girl on the beach!
Yet, whilst summer romance is the theme, there is also an underlying idea which is what makes the romance of summer from the song applicable beyond its context. An underlying theme which I think we all access in a variety of areas of our lives; our obsession with what might have been.
The idea of what might have been is one which is easy to become fixated upon. An idea which might even stop us from taking risks for fear of losing out. Our reflections on what might have been, our curiosity, regrets, wonder, are all very natural emotions and inclinations, but also one which are often unhelpful. Rather than motivating us to move forward, often tying us to a fantasy of the past.
When I hear this song, it’s not so much the sexualised or romantic element that I’m struck by, but the idea that we may sometimes be at risk of glorifying the past in our search for meaning or romanticising our experience of life. Whilst it is good to reflect and remember, even daydream, it is also important not to be tied to the past and our thoughts of what could have been. When we do this, we often miss out on the very real gift of the present. The things which we can actually do something about.
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