Good for You

When was there a good era
For most everyone living?
Was such an era ever?

Everyone can imagine
An era that seems better
To them for their ancestors,

But there aren’t a lot of tales
Or testimonies praising
Their own present as the best

Passed down from those ancestors.
Maybe archaeology,
History, and statistics

Could pinpoint the best era
For the most people in it,
But who would trust the answer?

Meanwhile, everyone picks one,
Projects one, imagines one,
Some version of an era

Dressed in dreams and nostalgia
That was or would be better
For everyone generally,

In their opinion, given
It feels like it would be, since
It would have been good for them.