My wonder years

I have always been fascinated by the 80s of the Twentieth Century. I will share my thoughts on this period in the following paragraphs.

Gorbachev and Reagan
signing the INF Treaty (1987)

The 80s of the Twentieth Century was a period where some of the most powerful political leaders of the world at least tried to solve a few of the most worrying global political issues at the time. I reckon this fact makes this decade a little bit different from the predecessor and successor years. Maybe the two most relevant political leaders who guided the rest of the world during this period were Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev. I find that the fall of the Berlin Wall (1989), the dissolution of the Soviet Union (1988-1991), and the consequent end of the Cold War (1947-1991) were good news, at least during those years. Although today we may have a slightly different opinion of these facts considering everything that has happened since then. Anyway, I find there was a very positive political climate of peace-making and reconciliation in the 80s, and I find it hard to understand why we have not kept that path during the following years.

Bruce Springsteen (1949)

Another positive thing that happened during those years was the cultural boom in arts, such as in pop/rock music, or in the film industry. I find that maybe some of the best pieces of art of the Twentieth Century were made during the 80s. Bands such as Metallica, Queen, or Guns N' Roses, and songwriters such as Bruce Springsteen or Michael Jackson, to name a few, had their finest moment then. Classic adventure, fantasy and science-fiction films such as the Star Wars saga broke the records, and very good quality teenage-oriented films were made, such as 'The Breakfast Club', 'The Goonies' or 'Back to the Future', to name three of my favorites. 

However, as usually happens, not everything in this decade was rosy. The 80s was a period where many other things weren't as positive at all. Along with the cultural boom, there was another boom, related to the cultural one, which involved high drug consumption and other unhealthy practices. During those years, many young people became addicted to these toxic substances, and this may be one of the reasons why this cultural hyperactivity could not be sustained in a much longer-term. In addition, the success of many of these artists and their corresponding fame led them to have very miserable lives. Maybe they were not prepared for that, they were only used by the businessmen to make a profit, or maybe both reasons. Thus, they became victims of their own success.

Having said that, I would like to add only a point here: I feel this decade of the 80s was very special, but that may be only because I was a child then. I spent my childhood during those years. Therefore, my perception of those years is strongly influenced by my point of view as a child. Childhood years should be fascinating for everyone.

The memories now are part of the dreams then