Will watch the videos over the next day or so as time permits.

Thoughts on when you say

So, I began to collect mementos from my childhood, not because I thought they were "special", but rather because I anticipated being nostalgic for them later in life.

At certain points throughout my adult life, I've revisited these mementos and failed to muster any nostalgia

This is a perfect example of the saying you can't return home. It's one of, if not close to being one of the predominant causes of sadness for many. As we journey through the intensities of time, whatever blessings we encounter are fleeting. Whether it be with people, objects or geography, whatever in those moments shined bright as it made our heart sing pass away like the leaves from a tree in the fall.

Life (motion) demands that change rush past us as we view these things passing by so quickly. Left with a memory of what was, of whatever comfort and joy used to exist in that place. Whatever love might have been untarnished by the harsh realities that demanded movement.

I believe this is part of the cause for the stories you hear of people (this isn't the norm like when I was a child) who worked 30+ years at the same place. Spending more time there with those people than they did with their own families. Forced to retire, they die within months to a year. I always wondered what role the loss of what they had grown to love (structured patterns, relationships with coworkers, being SEEN for competence in a way not afforded in everyday living etc) contributed.

Loss is a very real thing, its impact real whether it creeps up slow on a person or fast.

But it's my sense of loss itself, my memory of the items, that actually seems sweet.

The loss is real, but alas, that person seems almost like another as time has swept them away. They say ignorance is bliss, but I believe its better said as innocence is bliss.

Thanks for sharing. As I've entered the winter of my life this topic has gained much significance.