Make a Memory

If I were to ask you to tell me the first memory that comes to your mind, what would it be? Would it be from your childhood or more recent? Would it be a happy one or a major blowup? The brain is wired to remember anything emotional so it could be either.

One of my husband’s MANY sayings is, “Make a Memory.” While we’ve tried to make them more than quoting the saying, it hasn’t always happened. When our oldest daughter was a teenager, she loved ice cream cones. She also loved her beauty sleep. There was no need to tell her to go to bed for she had an automatic sleep button. After hearing her complain about us not doing enough for her, we decided to be spontaneous and “make a memory.” Ten minutes before McDonald’s closed, we ran into her room, shook her to awaken as we spoke hurriedly in a high pitch, “Let’s go get ice cream.”  Unfortunately, we weren’t able to wake sleeping beauty enough to coerce her into making this memory.

Memories can be made in holiday traditions by attending the same place, decorating, or in gift-giving. It can also be as simple as fishing or planning family vacations together. Memories can be made by doing extra-ordinary things like being in a beauty pageant, making straight A’s for the first time, being forced to have a C-section at the last moment, declaring bankruptcy, getting divorced, or living through tornadoes or other natural disasters.

Losing a loved one is another emotional experience making a memory, and can be more so depending on the age. After a loved one passes, people sit around chatting in clusters sharing their memories of the one who is gone. It was at my dad’s memorial last Thursday night when I realized how many memories are made from normal versus the out-of-the-ordinary stuff.

One repetitive comment everyone shared the most was my dad’s smile, then his character. But, the one thing the family remembered most was his warm welcome as he greeted everyone with a kiss and a hug. When they left, mom and dad stood, kissed and hugged everyone goodbye, walked them to the door, then waved goodbye until the vehicle was out of sight. This memory meant so much that my sister-in-law gave honor by displaying an old door framing an enlarged picture of my parents waving from behind the upper glass portion of this main attraction.

Between the memorial and my husband’s saying, I couldn’t help but think about what kind of memories I was making. I’d like to challenge all of you along with myself to recall your own memories, then start making new ones with those most important to you. They don’t have to have the “WOW” factor. My guess is the memory-makers will include something involving time spent together and a feeling of love and appreciation.
     Please share a memory or an idea with me in the comments below.

© 2015, Jena Fellers. All rights reserved.