Another Time...Another Place-1990

It was 1990 and truly another time, another place. I had finished the 10th grade and if I did the math correctly, I was 16.

I had a driver’s license and drove my mom’s 1972, Ford LTD (aka. the Batmobile). That car was dark army green, had a Ford 351 in it, and could hold 12 people in the back seat and easily outrun most cars on the road (not that I ever tested that feature….). Although, I can attest it could easily do 120 mph with no problem and outrun my buddies Chrysler.

A funny thing about that car is that it had these headlight shutters that would get stuck at times. When they would get stuck, usually when it was pouring rain, you’d have to jump and tap on the shutters with a hammer to get them to open. No cassette player, so you had to bring your Sony Walkman CD player and headphones with you if you wanted music other than the AM/FM radio.

It was built of steel and had big steel bumpers which means you could hit just about anything and not get a scratch on the car or bumpers. Heaven help if some little foreign car (e.g. Datsun, Toyota, etc.) were to ever to hit it, those cars would disintegrate.

I used to spend many evenings driving back and forth to music rehearsals in that car. I prayed a lot in that car and had some pretty big dreams in it as well. Some of those dreams never happened, some didn’t turn out like I thought they would, and others, well not sure what happened to those.

1990

It was 1990 and the Gulf War had started at 16 I was worried that in just 2 years, I’d have to register with Selected Service and if the war escalated, I might be called up to serve. Designing Women and The Golden Girls was on TV and Home Alone and Dances with Wolves were in theaters.

A Tandy Computer System (remember those) was $799. Kmart was still a place to shop. And going to the mall was an all-day trip on a Saturday. You spent the entire day there, exploring the food court and all the stores along with the mall water fountains and free samples from Chick-fil-A (back when it was still only in malls).

Everyone wore Tommy Hilfiger and Guess and if you were rich, Calvin Klein. I worked at Piggly Wiggly as a bagger and cashier and clearly remember saving up enough to purchase some really cool Tommy Hilfiger jeans from Castner Knott. And of course you had to have some Reebok.

Big Hair, Big Dreams

And the hair, oh my gosh, we can’t discuss 1990 without discussing the hair. Aqua Net, L’Oreal and Miss Clairol were hot items. Hair was BIG and yes, I had some big hair too! Not quite as big as some of my girlfriends, but pretty big with some L’Oreal hair gel.

Back in 1990 I had big dreams of working in the Christian music industry. I wanted to be a professional singer, move to Nashville and share the gospel in music around the world. I idolized some of the top artists in Christian music, including Sandy Patty, Amy Grant, Carman and others. Yes, I had the big CD case, neatly organized with all of my latest CD’s along with the liner booklets for each.

Do you remember 1990?

What were your dreams back in 1990? What dreams were fulfilled and what dreams changed or fell along the path of life?

We all have a story, and probably like mine, you probably had some big dreams from those teenage years. Big dreams that, at the point in your life, just like your hair style, seemed so cool.

How did those dreams shape who you are today?

Back in 1990 I sang in a Southern Gospel Quartet, was in the FFA and loved every moment of it. I think back to those moments of going from small church to small church to sing and think, wow, those moments really shaped who I am today. I’m sure you have a similar story, a similar journey or testimony as we called it in Red Bay.

Sometimes it’s good to look back, reflect, give thanks and look forward. Now at 50, I can look back and see how 1990 and the years that followed through college and beyond shaped every aspect of who I am today.

For me, it’s a refresh, a restart and renewal to look back, reflect on life then and look forward to today and beyond.

Another Time…Another Place

It was 1990 and my all-time favorite artist, Sandi Patty, released one of my most favorite albums to date, Another Time, Another Place.

“So I’m waiting for another time and another place, where all my hopes and dreams will be captured with one look at Jesus’ face. All my hearts been burning, my soul keeps yearning, sometimes I can’t hardly wait for that sweet, sweet someday, when I’ll be swept away to another time and another place.”

Back then, songs told a story, whether in Christian or Country music, every song told a story and had a music video to match. I bet you can remember the very place you were at when you heard a certain song, sang to the top of your lungs in the car and remember the feeling you had doing it.

Dream Big, Sing Loud

Just like that 1972 Ford LTD that saw many road trips to the mall and back, went to countless rehearsals, church services, to the Piggly Wiggly and around town, we’ve lived some life since 1990.

The page of today is yet to be written. What will your page read? Is there a dream you’ve been chasing in your heart but just can’t quite bring it forward? Are you looking for the next chapter?

I’m With You!

You are not alone, I’m with you. I too am looking to bring some new dreams and goals forward, start something new, do something different and learn to, once again, live like I did back in 1990.

In closing, do you have a dream or goal you’d like to share? Sometimes simply stating it out loud brings it forward, gives life to it and reminds you of your purpose.

Please Share It!

Feel free to share those dreams in the comments and let’s encourage one another to DREAM BIG and SING LOUD, just like we did in 1990.

I’m Jason Thrasher and this is BestLife50.