[ykonstant]

>'m sure part of the longing is just due to the fact that I was in my 20s, living in my own nice on-campus apartment, and was hopeful that I had a bright future. Many people probably have a longing to be 23 again for similar reasons. However I think that what makes the feeling especially strong for me is that being at MIT added a feeling of privilege to every day. It created a sense of fulfillment, that I had done everything right and had succeeded.

I feel literally the same about my 20s (not at MIT, but thereabouts).

[lumost]

It's the same reason why replaying the start of a video game feels satisfying.

> hopeful that I had a bright future

Life is full of choices—some small, like how to spend a day, and some large, like where to live or work. In youth, options feel endless, and many decisions are reversible. But as time passes, choices accumulate, obligations set in, and the future becomes more constrained.

At some point, we realize that paths we once considered are now closed —backpacking across Europe in your 20s, starting a family before 60, or pursuing a dream we always deferred. The surplus of time and energy fades, and life starts to become... predictable.

That's why the fantasy is alluring. It lets us revisit a time when anything felt possible.

[dyauspitr]

Starting a family at… 60?

[lumost]

Before 60, the max age to start a family is debatable. I used a number most would agree is inadvisable due to the likelihood you would see your children to their 18th birthday.

Most would set a maximum age where they would want to start a family as something significantly earlier.

[dyauspitr]

Yeah I hope so. Anything above roughly 40 is only an option for men and if you have a kid at 60 then you’re going to be almost 80 (or worse- statistically speaking dead) when the kid leaves home. Not at all ideal.