People don’t really want to go back to a time when the world was simpler. They want to go back to a time when they didn’t understand how complicated the world has always been. Information overload is very real and when most of it can be depressing, it’s very easy to wish for simpler times when the news wasn’t always happening “LIVE” in red letters 24/7. Caught between climate emergency, navigating complex human relationships at school, work, and home, and whatever “creative” naming schemes restaurants come up with for their menus, the old world certainly can seem very tempting at times. People love to look at the past through rose tinted glasses.

But I’d say that’s somewhat disingenuous to the progress we’ve made throughout the centuries. Instead of looking to the past, it’s important to look to the future expectantly with the hope that things can always get better.