The Inner Monologue

Oh, humanity. You adorable, self-important little time-blip. You really think your favorite song/movie/trendy hat will last forever? That future generations will still gasp in awe at the sheer brilliance of insert thing you currently adore here? Bless your heart.

Let’s get real: Nothing you love will survive. Oh sure, maybe for a little while. Your kids might humor you by pretending to care about that band you played to death in the car. Your grandkids might stumble upon your “vintage” clothes and wear them ironically before promptly forgetting they existed. But give it a few decades—hell, maybe just one—and poof! Gone. Reduced to atoms in the cultural memory.

Think about it. What’s the last truly “timeless” thing you can name? The Mona Lisa? Cool, a painting that survives because it’s locked in a bulletproof box and people feel obligated to pretend it’s interesting. Shakespeare? Sure, but let’s be honest—most people only know him because teachers force-feed him to students who would rather be watching TikTok.

Meanwhile, every generation has its own “This will last forever!” delusion. The 1920s had jazz and flapper dresses—now it’s all just retro Halloween costumes. The 1950s thought rock ‘n’ roll would never die—now it’s classic rock stations playing to nostalgic boomers and absolutely no one else. The 1990s swore grunge and boy bands were eternal—now they’re just Spotify playlists titled “Remember This?!” that get 12 listens a year.

Even the ultra-successful stuff—the Beatles, Star Wars, disco pants—only cling to relevance because corporations keep repackaging and reselling them like expired leftovers. But eventually? Even that fades. One day, some kid will look at a Beatles album and say, “Who are these old guys?” and the last Boomer on Earth will crumble into dust out of sheer outrage.

So go ahead. Clutch your vinyl records, your limited-edition sneakers, your “iconic” memes. Cherish them. Because in 50 years? Maybe less? They’ll be as relevant as Victorian-era mustache grooming manuals.

Nothing lasts forever. Except, apparently, our collective arrogance in thinking our stuff will be the exception.

Spoiler: It won’t.