On our 12th grade school trip to Italy, most of us excessively played Pokémon Red and Blue on the bus, the same games we had played when we were eight years old.
On Youtube, someone commented that, even as a grown-up, she still often listens to the songs from kids’ TV shows, like Pokémon, Digimon, or Beyblade. I just did the same on my way to work.
On the plane back from Lisbon, I saw a man in his 70s reading the latest edition of “Lustiges Taschenbuch.” What translates as “funny pocket book” is a monthly collection of Donald Duck and Mickey Mouse comics that has been published by a German company for over 50 years.
If a 70-year-old man can enjoy a comic that was made primarily with 8-year-olds in mind, the takeaway is clear: You are not too old. No matter what you like, want to do, or whose company you prefer, you are not too old.
You may have to surf more carefully when you’re 64 than you would at 18, and you’ll probably discuss different topics with people in their 20s at 40 than you will at 30, but when it comes to art and entertainment, a good chuckle will always be a good chuckle.
Whenever the invisible rules of society feel like they are restricting you from doing something that’s not necessarily a social activity at all, you are misinterpreting the rules. Those limitations aren’t there. They only exist in your head.
Do not feel ashamed, embarrassed, or silly for nerdy hobbies and nostalgia for childhood preoccupations. Usually, those are more authentic, satisfying, and honest than whatever layers of identity we add when the demands of society already interfere with our inner compass.
Now where is my Game Boy? I have some Pokémon to play.