Bring back da good ole days, let the children run and play, oh, a, oh, a, oh a, ohh
Teach them how to stay in school, live by the golden rule, oh, a, oh, a, oh, a, ohh….

If you are Bahamian you may be familiar with the lyrics to Sweet Emily's song, Bring Back Da Good Ole Days. Also you have probably heard your parents refer many times to "da good ole days" when all da neighbors were your friends, the days when you could go shopping, leave your doors opened, come back and nothing would be missing. You've probably also heard about taking lunch to school in brown paper bags, owning one pair of shoes and one suit of church clothes…I know I have.

When our parents talk about the good old days to us it sounds surreal. One pair of shoes? One suit of clothes? (To us ladies, that's a nightmare, pinch us and wake us up!). Do we really want to go back to "da good ole days?" The answer…? Definitely not. However, I appreciate the sentiment behind the song. We don't need to literally bring back "da good ole days". But, we need to bring back the value system of the good old days. By this I mean, have an appreciation for what you have without being angry about the things you don't have. For example if your parents can't afford to purchase the latest name brand clothing for you, there is no need to get angry and pout. Appreciate the things that they do give you. As India Arie says in one of her songs, "a lady ain't what she wears but what she knows."

Also, know what's important in life, such as God, family, friends and a good education. Everything else is minor stuff. The style of your clothes will change yearly, but these other things (God especially) will always be important. So as this is the time of year when many people feel pressured to have certain clothing, jewelry etc. to fit in with others try, not to get caught up in the rat race. Remember what this season is all about. . . Jesus Christ.

What happened to those days the good old happy days, we need to bring them back it's time to bridge the gap…, let's turn this thing around….
In closing, to a certain extent I agree with Sweet Emily. The good old days were good… back then. It helped to mold us into who we are today. Also, it is time to bridge the gap and turn around… However, today we don't literally want to go back But, let's take all the positive things we can from the good old days, apply them to our today and make our today and tomorrows better.