Spend a night on memory lane

Make an evening more fun by revisiting old photos

I know, from studying time logs, that many people find weekday evenings challenging to use well. We’re tired after work, and it’s hard to go anywhere. Maybe doing something fun is a little easier in the summer season when it’s nice out and light later, but generally, we do the must-dos with kids and chores. Then we fill any discretionary time with mindless screen consumption.

But if you’re looking to make one night this week feel a little special, without going anywhere, try this: consciously spend a night on memory lane.

If you have an iPhone, the photo app will often present you with a photo from around today’s date from years past. Facebook has been known to do this too. It can be fun to be reminded of a special moment that you found meaningful enough to take a picture or, or even post about at the time.

But you don’t have to rely on these apps to indulge in this nostalgia. You can purposefully visit the past yourself.

Pull out those photo books

If you’ve taken the time in the past to make photo albums or digital photo books, this is a pretty straightforward process. Pull one or two out — ideally ones you haven’t looked through in a while. Gather your spouse or kids, or if you know another relative or friend who has photos from the same time, maybe you could have them over (or Face Time or Zoom if you’re not in the same place). Or you could make yourself a fun beverage and do this on your own.

Then go through and reminisce about the experiences and moments captured in those photos. Remember when your hair was that short — or long? Remember when your niece, who just got married, was that little? Maybe you haven’t thought about that trip to Montreal in years but when you look at the photos, memories will come back and you can say hey, remember when we…

Even if you aren’t so organized, that’s no problem. You can look through a random file of old photos on your computer, or look at the archives on Shutterfly, or just go through the photos on your phone. Maybe focus on a few dozen shots from a particular time period.

The point is to do this intentionally. Most of the time when we take photos, people aim to capture happy moments, or at least meaningful ones. So focus on a time period when that was the case — weddings, graduations, particular vacations, or just outings when the kids were little. If you see someone in a photo you haven’t talked with in a while, this can be a nice reason to reach out. Or maybe you’ll decide that you want to visit that park that’s an hour away this fall too, given how nice the pictures were from ten years ago. All those maples will still be pretty!

Changing the story

If you make a point of choosing a happy time, or one that felt meaningful to you, then this night on memory lane will be a far more pleasant way to spend an hour than simply scrolling through headlines or watching reality TV. If you do this with company, it can be just as entertaining.

And if you’re feeling a little unhappy or bored with life, know this — a simple night on memory lane can help you change your story. Lots of good things have happened in your life. Ok, maybe you had more hair or fewer wrinkles in the past photos, but now you have all these memories. It can really change the narrative. Not bad for a weekday night.