Are you thinking of him? Your lover from the Mexican restaurant? 

What did you text your best friend the first time you heard Adele’s latest hit, “Hello”? The above line is what I texted mine, referring to the man she fell in love with across the restaurant one night at dinner, with an instantaneous connection made through eye contact and a little flirtatious wave goodbye.  

Adele makes us remember those random strangers we once made eye contact with, people who the odds of remembering are usually slim to none. But Adele makes certain we not only remember them, but we miss them. Full of nostalgia, her voice summarizes just about anyone’s past. 

When we end things, we are usually left on a bitter or sad note and looking back can be painful. However, as time passes, we miss those earlier days. We are never going to be nostalgic for the pain, but rather the pleasure. It’s our mind playing tricks on us, insisting things were better than they were. Pessimistic? No. I’ve just been tricked by nostalgia far too many times.

One of my best friends from high school gave into her nostalgia, recently calling her ex boyfriend of two years to see how he was doing— possibly following up on a drunk text or two. She ended up meeting up with him, much to the dismay of many of her close friends, myself included. We didn’t want her to go down that road again. However, she found it to be a cleansing experience. She noted that her ex wasn’t the fabulous person that her imagination, or nostalgia, had made him out to be; he was just a person. A person with whom things just didn’t work out. And that’s okay. 

Nostalgia is one of those things that some people are comfortable with and others aren’t. I’m far too comfortable in my nostalgia, always down for some Adele and yearning for the past. Others avoid Adele, or nostalgia, and continue on. I find that to be extremely admirable, because who has time for nostalgia nowadays? Unlike Adele, most of us, unfortunately, can’t make a living off of recounting our nostalgia to the general public. Reality calls, and it’s time to face it and move on— which isn’t all too bad, as my friend found in facing her ex. 

Adele noted that this upcoming album is her dealing with nostalgia and feelings. You know what this means. More nostalgia coming to you soon following the release of Adele’s new album on November 20. All the feels.