The next 10 years will be a period of unexplained sadness. A large segment of the American population will just find themselves feeling sad in a way that defies medical science — not depressed, but merely blue, as though they were remembering something that saddens them.
Those who have this feeling will not mind it, strangely. They will describe it as meditative, as though their whole life were spent contemplating its little tragedies and regretful moments. Many who experience this sadness will say it causes them to be a more compassionate person, as they are deeply sensitized to the suffering of others.
This will be known as America’s Blue Period, and, when it passes as unexpectedly as it came, we will miss it.