"Reminiscing"

“Remembery Records”

“...so Grandpa turned the rusty latchkey of his magnificent remembery and set free a symphony of stories.”

Glenda Millard (The Duck and the Darklings)

I woke this morning thinking of the way we reminisce about the past, only remembering, sweetly, the good stuff. Then I thought of an autograph book I posted on eBay a few weeks ago. It was the book of one Scotsman, M.A. Blair, dated 1919, and was undoubtedly something taken to World War I with him. In it are messages from loved ones, poems and songs about home and a few wonderful drawings he made of himself. The sketches are humorous, so I have the impression of a young man who had no idea what was coming. I don't know how his autograph book ended up in Birmingham, AL in 2015, but it did, and looking through it, my heart is touched by its poignant optimism.

My friend whose brother died suddenly last week spoke over lunch yesterday of the memorial service. He welled up at the mention of all the funny stories others told about his brother, and how the congregation laughed and laughed. We try always to recall what is good, what is precious about people who've gone, and that's as it should be. Our love and our memories are locked up together in the wonderful stories of their lives, and it makes us happy to remember.

If you're a person who still has parents or grandparents around, get their stories. Take the time to listen and record and laugh with them. These are the memories you will share with your own children and grandchildren someday. The old-ones' “remembery” records are more important than any courthouse documents authenticating a life lived, loved and valued here on Planet Earth.

                                                                In the Spirit,

                                                                     Jane