"The past always seems better when you look back on it than it did at the time. And the present never looks as good as it will in the future." — Peter Benchley in his novel Jaws.

A feeling seems increasingly common in our lives today: everything feels available, yet something still feels missing every time.

Life exists in an age of innovation. A few taps on a smartphone can connect people with someone sitting thousands of kilometres away. We can order food without leaving our homes, travel between cities with easy options, and, more importantly, access vast amounts of information instantly and capture every important moment with a camera that fits in our pockets. Technology has transformed every aspect of our daily lives.

Yet despite having almost everything that earlier generations could only imagine, life often feels strangely boring, colourless and emotionally distant. Feels like something is surely missing.

Festivals are an example. When we see our earlier life in photographs or remember the childhood festivals, they all seem brighter, happier than ever. The decorations seemed simple yet beautiful, the food seemed tastier, family gatherings seemed warmer, and even ordinary conversations seemed more meaningful. Functions and celebrations once seemed to have an excitement that's sometimes difficult to find today. Life had fewer facilities, fewer gadgets and almost none of the digital connectivity that defines modern life, yet somehow those moments feel richer.

This raises a question: why? Why does everything old feel better than today?

Was life genuinely better in the past, or is our mind simply remembering it differently? Does the easy availability of everything make life value things less? Has social media connected the world while simultaneously creating distance between people? Have festivals actually lost their importance? Has life simply changed the way we experience them?

Perhaps the answer lies somewhere between life memories, life psychology and the transformation of society itself.

Earlier, Everything Was Simple Yet Meaningful and Close to the Heart

Life before today's changes in technology was not that easy. In many ways, it was harder. Travelling took time. Talking with others was slower, as everyone didn't own a mobile phone. Getting information was not easy. One had to wait for months to get a reply to the letter sent. Fun was not always available. No washing machine, no dishwasher, no vacuum cleaner, so doing housework needed people and many things that we now think we can't live without were not there at all.

But there was a kind of simplicity in daily life. For people, a normal day could be very special. A morning started with going to school, seeing friends, going to class and then coming home. The afternoon could be spent playing with kids from the neighbourhood. There was no need to always check messages or write about every action. Kids could just play without thinking about filming it for others.

Neighbours knew each other well. Families talked more. Mothers sat together and shared their day. Kids playing in the area and older people telling stories were normal parts of life. Evenings felt different. People gathered around the TV to watch Ramayana, Mahabharata and my personal favourite, Shaktiman. They listened to the radio or just talked to each other. Nights were darker, but maybe the dark also made people sit closer together.

There was no scrolling. There was no need to always be available. There was no pressure to take a picture of every moment, post it and get likes. Maybe most important of all, there was scarcity.

Scarcity often makes things more special. A festival that came once a year felt amazing because people waited for it. New clothes were exciting because they were not bought every week. A family meeting felt important because not everyone could come together whenever they wanted. Photos were special because there were not many of them.

Now we have everything all the time. When everything is always there, nothing feels special anymore. Earlier, people often waited for times. Now we sometimes need time to get away from the usual. That difference can completely change how life feels.

Why This Dissatisfaction?

The irony of life is that scientific progress has made living easier while emotional satisfaction has not necessarily increased at the same pace. Science has transformed transportation, healthcare, communication, education and countless other areas. We can travel between cities within hours. We can speak to someone on the other side of the world almost instantly. We can learn anything through the internet.

So why do we feel dissatisfied? One important reason may be the changing nature of interaction. We are more connected than ever. That does not automatically mean that we are closer. A person may have hundreds or thousands of followers online. Still have very few people with whom they can genuinely share their feelings, emotions. Someone may spend hours interacting with people while barely speaking to the person sitting beside them.

Social media has created a contradiction. It has reduced distance but sometimes increased emotional distance. Earlier, if you wanted to meet someone, you often had to go to their home or meet them somewhere. That effort itself made the interaction meaningful. Today, communication requires no effort. A message can be sent in seconds. A reaction can replace a conversation. A birthday wish can be sent to dozens of people.

Convenience is useful. But Convenience can also reduce emotional investment. The modern social world has also become increasingly influenced by numbers. Everyone is focused on their followers, likes, views, comments and engagement. Social interaction can sometimes feel like a competition for attention. The question gradually changes from: "Who are the people I am close to?" to: "How many people are paying attention to me?" That distinction matters. A large digital network is not necessarily the same as a social network.

Modern society has also become increasingly individualistic. People are busy with careers, education, financial responsibilities, personal ambitions and digital lives. Urbanisation has placed people in sky-high buildings where hundreds of people may live within the structure while remaining strangers. We can live door to door with someone for years without knowing their name. This may be one of the contradictions of modern civilisation. We are physically closer than socially farther apart.

That may be one reason festivals sometimes feel different today. Earlier festivals were often community experiences. People visited one another, prepared food together, decorated homes, exchanged greetings and spent periods together. Today we can celebrate a festival while simultaneously being distracted by our phones. We may attend a gathering physically while mentally being elsewhere.

After the COVID-19 Pandemic, Life has Changed Completely

The COVID-19 pandemic was not only a health crisis but also a moment that shifted how people lived, thought and connected. For a time, people were stuck inside their homes. Schools shut down. Offices moved to the internet. Travel came to a stop. Public events vanished. Even festivals and celebrations were. Cancelled.

Suddenly, people felt what it meant to be separated from others. The pandemic made everyone aware of how fragile life could be. What once felt certain, like going to work, seeing a friend or visiting a relative, now carried risk. A simple walk outside became something to think about.

Safety became the priority. People started paying attention to their health, their families, their money and what the future might hold. The pandemic also taught a lesson about money. Millions faced stress. Jobs were lost. Businesses struggled. Families had to rethink what they spent. In this time, saving money and feeling financially secure became more important than ever. So people started thinking twice while spending money.

Even as life slowly returned to normal, some habits didn’t go back completely. People grew used to gatherings. Working from home became more common. Online meetings became part of life. Many families started to see celebrations. Big gatherings were no longer the way to make special memories. A quiet dinner with family could be enough.

In this way, the pandemic may have sped up changes that were already beginning. It’s wrong to say it made everyone more selfish. But at the same time, human behaviour during the crisis was complex. Some people became careful and more protective. Others showed kindness. Helping neighbours, supporting local businesses, sharing resources.

Still, the pandemic changed how people think about safety, money, relationships and what really matters. Once society shifts, it rarely goes back exactly the way it was before.

Was Everything About the Past Really Good?

Before concluding the past, here comes the important question: Was life actually better in the past?

The answer is not really. At least not entirely.

Science tells us a story from our memories about life and the past. Our minds do not store the past like a recorded video. Human memory is selective, emotional and reconstructive. We remember moments vividly while forgetting many others.

This is where psychology becomes extremely important. Let's discuss the scientific reasons why the past feels better than it actually happened.

Rosy Retrospection:
Rosy retrospection is human brain Psychology that says when we remember the past in a way more than how it actually was and when we lived it. When we look back, we often remember the times, the exciting moments and the important experiences while forgetting the problems and the hard times.

Think about us when we were children. We might remember playing during school holidays, celebrating festivals and being with friends. But we might not remember the school exams, the strict teachers, the family rules, the sickness, the money problems, the arguments and all the normal days that weren’t very fun.

The past gets cleaned up by memory. This doesn’t mean that our memories are not real. It means that memory picks and chooses. We remember the parts.

Fading Affect Bias:
Another psychological phenomenon is known as the fading affect bias. The emotional strength connected to moments can go away quicker than the emotional strength connected to good moments. A hard experience from ten years ago might not feel as bad now as it did when it happened. A good memory from the same time can still make someone smile. As bad feelings disappear, the good parts of our memories can take over. This can give the feeling that the past was better than it really was.

Imagine someone thinking about their childhood home. They might remember the smell of their mother's cooking, the sound of kids playing outside and family talks at night. They might not remember the roof, power outages, money problems or other hard times with the same strong feelings. The result is a past that feels nicer than it actually was.

The Peak-End Rule:
The peak‑end rule is another idea that helps explain our memories. Every person knows or uses the saying that " अंत भला तो सब भला". According to this idea, people often judge an experience by its most striking moment and by how it ends, rather than by looking at every single moment equally.

Think about a family trip. Perhaps the road was tiring. Maybe there were delays, arguments and uncomfortable travel. If the family had an unforgettable evening together at the destination and finished the trip happily, the whole experience may later be remembered as wonderful.

The same thing happens with festivals. We do not remember every minute of a festival equally. We remember the excitement of wearing clothes, eating special food, meeting relatives, taking photographs, attending celebrations and spending time together. Those emotional peaks can define our memory of the experience.

Nostalgia as Comfort:
"Nostalgia is a file that removes the rough edges from the good old days." — Doug Larson.

Perhaps nostalgia is the strongest of all factors. It is the emotional desire to return to the past. When the present situation is uncertain, stressful or overwhelming, the past can act as a psychological refuge. We know the past, since we know how those stories ended.

There is, however, a certain amount of uncertainty nowadays, which is the reason why, when they are overwhelmed by adult life, people often reach back to their childhood memories. Things such as old songs, photographs, smells, festivals, school uniforms, games from when one was a child and well-known places are able to immediately take us emotionally to another stage of life.

Nostalgia provides a sense of continuity since it serves to remind us that we have gone through various stages of life and that certain things will always have an emotional significance.

So whenever we say 'Everything was better before', what we in fact mean is 'I miss the person I used to be when I went through those experiences.'
That's a completely different statement.

So, Are All These Feelings Simply an Illusion?

Not completely.
Psychology explains why we may idealise the past. That does not mean every criticism of modern life is imaginary. Both ideas can be true at the same time. Memories can exaggerate the parts of the past, while society can genuinely change in ways that affect society's social relationships.

The past was not perfect. There were limits. Healthcare was less advanced. Modern life has. Reduced many of these problems.

Humanity should not romanticise hardship simply because it belonged to childhood. At the same time, progress has brought new challenges. Digital addiction, comparison, information overload, social isolation and pressure to remain constantly connected are modern problems.

The important point is that technology itself is not necessarily the enemy. The problem is how technology is used.

A smartphone can connect a family member living abroad with parents. A smartphone can also prevent a family sitting together from having a conversation. Social media can help people maintain friendships across distances. Social media can also create comparison. Technology can make life easier. Ease does not automatically create happiness. The real problem may be the imbalance.

How Can We Overcome This Feeling?

The solution is not to reject life and return completely to the past. That is neither realistic nor necessary. Instead, the solution is to learn how to live with technology without allowing modern technology to replace real life.

The first step is to question memories. Whenever the past seems perfect, ask: Do I remember the experience or only the best parts? Think about the difficulties that existed alongside memories. Remembering the picture helps distinguish nostalgia from reality.

The second step is to create experiences in the present. Many people complain that today's festivals are not as enjoyable as they used to be. Perhaps the solution is to ask oneself what the solution is doing to make today's festivals meaningful.

Third, question yourself: are we spending time with family? Are we visiting relatives? Are we talking to neighbours? Are we putting phones away for hours? Are we creating memories or simply recording them?

The solution says that the present is beautiful too; do not wait twenty years to realise that.

We Do Not Need to Choose Between the Past and the Present

Life has changed completely. A large part of interaction has shifted from offline to online. Communication has become faster. Travel has become easier. Technology has transformed our routines. Social relationships have changed. Festivals and celebrations have evolved.

There is no doubt that the simplicity of life had its own beauty. People often had fewer possessions but sometimes more time for one another. Communities could feel closer. Waiting made things exciting. Scarcity made experiences valuable.

The past also had its difficulties. It is easy to romanticise yesterday when we are standing inside the complexity of today.
The truth is that neither the past nor the present is perfect.

The past gives us memories. The present gives us opportunities. The future will give meaning to both. Perhaps the real goal should not be to return to the past but to bring some of its qualities into the present.

Because the present is not something we are passing through. It is the past we are creating. The Present Will Become Someone's Past. We are now living in the times that our future self may miss someday.

That is why the present deserves our attention. Rather than constantly comparing today's life with yesterday's life. We should ask a different question: "What can I do today that my future self will be grateful to remember?"
That question changes everything for the self.

References:

1. quora.com
2. time.com (Time Magazine)
3. https://share.google/Hg5Mzi1hMfAdyimpc
4. Rosy retrospection - Wikipedia https://share.google/rNqDwu2VW2Rb1CTLV
5. Wikipedia.com
6. https://youtu.be/6EqvaNaZ-So?si=YXqK7E-t0kB0X7Cz

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