Events, material, significant, and awesome, are occurring all around us. Many touch our lives. Some events are in the middle of our steps. A series of photographs from the past reminded of several big events that I had long forgotten. They were not in my immediate memory. If quizzed, I doubt that I would have recalled them. A faded pictured changed everything. I do remember – details as well as the awareness at the time of how overwhelming the experience was. In remember, I realize that I do not know when I forgot. There was no sense of letting go. Now that I am looking back, I wonder.
Life reminds me that letting good events etch themselves into my memory is a good things. At all ages, we do not remember the good things in life often enough! Especially when we are challenges, good memories remind us of things that always remain true, even if we cannot see them. The mantras I keep coming back to include the following.
Big events have occurred. In my life and yours, they are a fact. When someone says that God “lifted me out of the ditch, pulled me from deep mud. He stood me up on a solid rock to make sure I wouldn’t slip.” (Psalm 40.2) S/he is not kidding. Good things have, are, and can happen in your life and mine.
That fact that I cannot remember the good does not mean that I should think that no good has ever happened. Forgetting is natural, young and old struggle to remember everything.
Helping Life etch good events is something I need to practice. Celebrating, talking about it, and sharing the news are just the beginning. We can accelerate and deepen the process of remembering.
As someone shared the defining moments of their life, I found myself telling stories I had long forgotten. In the act of telling I found myself thanking God for the Divine experiences I have had. Each story brought Hope closer. Sharing them took everything to places closer to my heart. For me, that’s big.
