Both the pleasure and sadness of remembering something from the past and wishing that you could experience it is a definition of “nostalgia”. Simply put for me it means a yearning for the happiness of a former time or place. I guess we all experience the desire to return to one’s family or friends, that sentimental feeling that comes and goes.

Recently Helen visited me on her way to a wedding in Flaxton. We go back to 28 years of friendship that includes our sons. When I brought out a school photo of the 2 boys and one with guinea pigs, Helen was moved to joy and amazement. This photo gave us the opportunity to reflect about our lives, families, conversations and past. I liked particularly the way Helen has recorded, journaled and kept keepsakes of her children to pass onto them in their later years – not simply a photo album, but a treasure trove of her thoughts, feelings and nostalgic memories to communicate from her heart.

I showed Helen the famous Singer sewing machine belonged to my Aunty Maggie who is 96 years of age and in a nursing home. In the drawers are the zips, buttons, vintage fabrics, silk cottons and elastics, sewing needles and pins that have cluttered this space for many, many years and speak clearly of my Aunty’s passion for needlework.

While visiting the op shops in Maleny, Helen and I discovered the fun and thrill of the find! the bargain clothing item or tea cup.

The vivid memory of my mother making cups of tea for friends. The favourite floral dress with a lace collar or the smell of moth balls in the drawers in her room. This brings me to my Aunty whose old wardrobe was full of musty coats, jackets, dresses and pants, some stained and ragged, others in perfect order. I guess nostalgia is like a cream cake with layers of fillings and delicious tastes that put a smile on your face.

Can you recall a nostalgic memory that opens the floodgates of happiness? I would love to read about it.