You know the old saying, “A picture is worth a thousand words?” When it comes to nostalgia, nothing is more true. Sure, we can waffle on and on about the glory of our childhoods for hours in increasingly florid prose — but as these '90s photos that need no explanation demonstrate, the best way to jog your memory and make those lovely nostalgic feelings wash over you is just by looking at a picture or two. Or five. Or 34, as the case may be, because that's what we've got here.
I think, too, that one of the reasons images like these are so effective has to do with the fact that so many other people remember them, too. There's something about a collective recollection that makes us feel like a part of something bigger than ourselves — even if that recollection is about something seemingly trivial, like an old television show or a type of pencil. That's why we all love these sorts of nostalgia roundups so much — not only do we get to reminisce about fond memories, but moreover, we get to do it in the company of others who also remember those things fondly. Everybody wins!
So here — take a look at these 34 images. Do you remember what they refer to as vividly as I do?
1. Making Masterpieces With This
2. Packing These In Your Backpack
3. These
4. This Guy's Sense of Style
5. This
6. This Piece of Furniture
7. This Stuff
8. This Thing
9. Ugh, This
10. You've Got Mail
11. This Guy and His Favorite Drink
12. This Guy
13. Those Aren't Band-Aids
14. These Things
15. Oh, Yeah
16. Breakfast of Champions
17. This
18. Playing This
19. And This
20. Put a Ring On It
21. Kissing Like This
22. These Books
23. And These
24. And These
25. And These
26. This
27. And This
28. Also This
29. Consumerism
30. Albums Full of These
31. Can You See the 3D Picture?
32. *Submarine Noise*
33. Kickflip
34. Aaaaaaaall This
Images: origami_potato/Flickr; chillboy420, grapefruitcrafts, writtenby_suzannah, rockdelgrosso, yep_its_esha, 3cj30, obsessedwiththe90s, troyersa, jedhead93, 1kweenjola, parizblamo, heathermarie923, jennyjdaybyday, charlottejohnson90, wigglethebeagle, kanyebreast, the autumnpeople, kitsch_huntress, shopsimple_, rishajsri, samiamwoodson, acupfullofsass, _just_me_i_am/Instagram; Imgur (9); Giphy (2)
