Day 11

"Memory is a way of holding onto the things you love, the things you are, the things you never want to lose."

From the television show The Wonder Years

Memories are powerful things. They can brighten your day or bring you to tears. Or do both at the same time. I treasure my memories. Ask anyone that knows me. Especially Mike. He always gets on to me and Kat for telling the same stories over and over. But we can't help it. We've had so many good times. And retelling the stories is a way of reliving them. 

Some may think my affinity for memories may work against my efforts to live in the moment. But I don't think that's true. We are comprised of all of our moments...strung together. We are here in this moment as a result of all the others leading up to it. I celebrate my past, where I come from. Of course, we cannot live in the past....that's not healthy...and will keep from enjoying the now. But every once in a while, paying a visit to the past...letting the memories from a live well lived and full of love can bring so much joy to right here and now. 

That's what happened to me last night. The roomies and I were discussing what dishes we were going to make to the Olympic Potluck this weekend. We each have to bring something from our family's country of origin. I am representing SCOTLAND!! The MacTavish clan!! During this discussion, the film So I Married An Axe Murderer came to mind. On a whim, we put it on. And that's when the laughing started. This was one of my brother's favorite movies. We would sit around the dinner table quoting it all the time!

"Give your mother a kiss or I'll kick your teeth in!!"

Brian was very good at the Scottish accent. Just excellent. the rest of us did our best. We were in stitches listening to each other ramble off different lines. 

"I'm not kidding, that boy's head is like Sputnik; spherical but quite pointy at parts! Now that was offside, wasn't it? He'll be crying himself to sleep tonight, on his huge pillow."

I was grinning the whole time the movie played. And its hard to get me to sit still through a movie these days. My attention span isn't what it used to be. But I enjoyed every second of it. There was no sadness, no sorrow....just great memories that made me smile from ear to ear.

And I will take those memories AND those quotes with me to the Olympic party tonight as I represent SCOTLAND! Brian was very proud of our Scottish heritage and I'm pretty sure my Scotch Eggs and "If It's Not Scottish, It's Crap!!" t-shirt will make him proud!

We cannot live in the past...but we can let memories from our past bring joy to our present.

Day 11: I am so grateful for my many wonderful memories. I am grateful for the comfort they bring me, for the laughs, the way they make me feel close to those that are far away. I am grateful for this life I have lived and all the joy that the memories from it brings. I am grateful to my roommates for watching So I Married An Axe Murderer with me last night. HEAD! MOVE!!

(Even now I am having a memory!! I think I've already written about memories! Ha!! Ah well!! Too too much to he grateful for!!)