Have you seen something new on the television, the internet or in a store and said to yourself ‘I’m getting old’? Have you ever daydreamed about the things that went on during your childhood, looked around yourself and thought how old you are? Well, I also look at it another way. I look at the name of something or what it is called and say to myself ‘in my day it was called…it’s exactly the same thing’.

Many things are not different from the olden days. It is only named differently or packaged differently or made to look different. I imagine you are asking, why? Simple. To peak interest in something being new therefore you will purchase it. The thinking is that newer is better therefore, make the consumer think the product is new. To pass the test that the product is new, they add a little additional ingredient, that really does nothing to change the product (or does it?), then call it new, passing the test of calling it ‘new’.

In my day natural items were used to combat ailments or for cleaning or just about everything. Actually, natural is cheaper and sometimes better. A across the counter laxative will cost much more than some prunes or prune juice. There was oatmeal, Oxtagon soap that was used for, not only washing clothes but treating poison ivy and other rashes. The list can go on and on and I doubt I can think of all the items that fall into this category.

I feel old in so many other ways. I used to want to always be partying or be around the gang. There was always something alcoholic to drink. There was loud music everywhere I went. Now, I am content to sit on the porch and watch people and traffic go by. I go one or two weeks without a drink. I really love quietness. I remember my military K-9 days, which was very solitary, and I still love that. Now I know I am old.

Have you ever heard the first bars of music and immediately knew the song? I bet you remembered when the first time was you heard the song, where you were, who you were with and what you were doing (probably the conversations that took place). I’m not talking about this new stuff. I am talking about the oldie-but-goodie of years gone by. Yeah, we are all getting old. But there is nothing wrong with that because we are still alive, mobile and can remember it all. We can smile and recall it all. We sit around with our friends and talk about the old days.

There is nothing wrong with getting old because it is something we all must do, like one day we all must die. All I am saying here is that old is good and new may not be better because it may be a new brand of old, including the music. Thinking about new music, I have listened to new music and it will have the sound of an oldie-but-goodie with different lyrics. One day the young people today will do the same thing we are doing. They will look back and say ‘those were some good old days’.