Hey there, Shankar here.
One of the rewarding aspects of our work at hidden brain is that we have the space to experiment with different ways of telling stories.
Sometimes we need an hour long podcast to fully explore a topic.
Other times a short episode can convey our thinking.
Today's show is a short essay about one thing our minds do as we confront the Covid-19 pandemic.
Over the past few weeks, our tvs have become a time machine.
They've transported us to our past, to scenes of crowded subway cars and chaotic playgrounds where faces are unmasked and people sit shoulder to shoulder in sports stadiums.
I have found myself marveling at movies where carefree characters hang out at music clubs.
It makes me remember a time when I didn't have to think twice about hugging a friend or stopping by a cafe with a colleague.
It's hard to imagine being so carefree again, even as many communities in the US and across the globe make tentative steps to reopen.
The ache we feel for a pre Covid world may seem unproductive.
What's the value in looking back at lost freedoms and comforts?
Why focus on things we cannot change?
Of course, this is how the mind works.
Some time ago, I was chatting with Clay Rutledge, a psychologist at North Dakota State University, for a hidden brain episode called the good Old Days.
Clay studies nostalgia and how it affects the way we think about our lives.
Many of us experience nostalgia as a bittersweet emotion.
It combines the memory of good times with the ache of loss.
You might think that people who are very nostalgic are more prone to sadness and depression.
But Clay found that nostalgic reflection actually makes us optimistic.