Memories…we recall them, we share them and we even sing about them because they play such an important role in our lives and in our grief. Sometimes they make us happy and sometimes they make us sad because they represent a time that we yearn for; a time when something was different. When I make funeral arrangements with families, we talk about memories and inevitably we cry, but that’s a good thing.
One way of creating great memories is through journaling. Writing has allowed me the ability to revisit some of the best times in my life. Journaling about your children is a great thing; if you write down some of the things that they say and do as they grow up, you’ll find yourself being just as touched years later. And someday those journals will be read with great fondness by your children while they are remembering you.
One of my favourite memories was in the summer of ’92 when the kids and I went to visit one of my friends…“This summer, Lynn, Darrell and I went on a vacation to Thunder Bay. We spent the first night of our travel in Wawa which overlooked a small lake and a lot of trees. In the morning we walked along the lake, admired the view and talked about what it would be like to live there. We threw handfuls of small pebbles into the lake, all of us at once, and listened to the funny sound that they made. That day we decided that we would like to live in Wawa. Our dreams were simple and our hopes would have warmed our hearts on cold winter nights. Each day I find a new reason to cherish the memories I have of my children but nothing so far has reached as deep into my heart as the walk along the beach in Wawa. In the autumn years of my life I want to make this trip one more time…to throw a handful of pebbles into the lake and remember the good life that I had.”
