Categories
Family Relationships

Making Memories

Life passes us by just with a blink of an eye. Our tomorrow’s are not guaranteed. Heart attacks, strokes, car accidents, and now Covid…are just a few of the various things can take a person away, changing so many lives unexpectedly. People grow up and apart as life has us all so busy in trying to keep up, leaving one another behind. So, we have one thing that we can look back on to remind us of better days that are now behind. Memories.

Memories are a way to look back at time and never forget the closeness we once had with those that meant so much to us during that season or period of time. Memories can be captured in so many ways. So, what is holding you back from capturing the time that you have been blessed with, with those who are valuable to you and still present in your life?

The question isn’t whether or not the day will come, but WHEN the day comes that you are no longer able to see someone you love so deeply, who impacted your life so tremendously, you will want something to remember their voice again, their being. You will want to remember what they looked like as their image in your head will begin to fade with time, slowly. One day if you are lucky, you will wake up older and will want to take a look back at moments that occurred in your life. These things that keep the memories alive are what will lighten your heart again.

Here are 6 Different Ways to Capture Memories

Take Too Many Pictures
So many have become shy around cameras, but little do we realize that those are the things that family and friends will be left with when we are no longer around. Not only that, but as I mentioned above, we become so consumed with the responsibilities in our lives that time passes us by. A picture is only a moment in which time is still, but tells a story that is kept within our hearts. Take those pictures and have something to look back on with a smile.

Video Recordings
When you see your parents dancing or your siblings acting silly, take the opportunity to make it a lasting memory. To laugh back at or just remember the simpler times. There have been so many times where my family and I pull out old video recordings from many years back and are just so grateful that someone captured that moment. When there are times that some people can’t be around family, such as today because of covid, that is when these recording will warm the heart. These recordings will rush you back to some wonderful memories that you forgot even happened.

Take Advantage of Voice Recordings
Thanks to Build-A-Bear, we can now record our own voices into teddy bears. These gifts do not have to be particularly for children, but husbands/wives, parents, friends, and your brother/ sister will also treasure these bears with great sentiment. Many times when someone passes away we often, not purposely, forget the sound of their voice. Even keeping a voicemail of a simple, “Hey, its me. Call me back.” is special. Oh, how so many wish they can hear the voice of a parent or spouse who has passed away.

Make Clay Hand Molds
These were a big hit a few years back and I never really thought about how special these clay molds are. They tell about a time when your child was small and could barely stand on their own. Years later, it will drift you back to memories of how their tiny fingers held onto yours as they slept. This can be done with an elderly Mother and her adult daughter holding hands. Time is precious and doesn’t keep those we love around for very long. An anniversary memory with Husband and wife clinging hands. Clay hand molds are such an amazing way to make a lasting memory.

Write Letters
Letters express feelings and emotions that we once forgot others had for us or we had for them. Many times a letter to ourselves is just as an important memory as the one to a loved one. These are great memories to have, because they shed light on the exact thoughts you once had. Our thoughts, there are millions, but when we write them in a letter that is one thought that we can actually remember. Not too long ago my sister pulled out a letter from my niece from 10 years ago, and though it took us so long for us to figure out what she had written (She had just learned to spell, haha), it reminded me of the phases she was going through at that time in her young age. Her message to me was, “I need Superman and Robin to beat up bad guys and save the universe.” At that time, she was into superheroes and I remember I always pretended to be Robin and her Superman. Letters are just as meaningful as pictures just processed differently.

A Valuable Object
When we think of something valuable we think about shirts, jewelry, gifts. But, that’s not so much what I am talking about when I say valuable objects. Though the ladder are also great things to keep and cherish. What I mean, however, are movie tickets from your first date. A flower you picked from the ground when you were on vacation with family. Perhaps even a cup from a football game you took your dad to for his birthday. You can add these into a memory scrapbook that you can look back on years down the road and share with your grandkids.

Capturing the Moment

No matter what it is you are doing or with who, there are always ways to make memories from that day with that person. We don’t have forever and as I mentioned, these are the things we are left with as time passes. I have kept so many things from my school years and though some of those friends and I have lost contact or have just moved on with life in a different direction, it is still nice to look through them and remember the times we all had together. The way to making memories is putting your pride and shyness aside and capturing the moment, in the moment. You won’t regret taking that picture or recording, but you will regret not having it when there is nothing else to look back on. Cherish the time you have and make memories. Every moment can be a memory.

Categories
Family Holidays

A Christmas Reminder

Yay!! Christmas is Tomorrow! Today many are beginning the celebration that will continue into the morning of the 25th. This is the time of year we all have been waiting for. I know the circumstances are much different this year for many families, however, that should not change what Christmas means to you. Be safe, yes, but also be grateful.

What Does Christmas mean for you and your family? For me, Christmas is not about the amount we spent on others’ gifts, or how pretty we wrapped presents, what type of bows we used, and how perfect we lined up the wrapping paper. It is not about receiving any gifts at all. I mean, it is a plus (Haha), but that is not what makes Christmas magical. Gifts don’t having meaning. FAMILY…- Now, that has meaning.

This will not be a long blog about what to do on this holiday, but a short, simple, & sweet Christmas Reminder

Christmas for me, is having the time to rejoice with family and cherish the closeness with one another. It’s about taking a step back and watching your sister conversate with your mom and witnessing their smile and love for each other. It’s about the look on your father’s face loving and taking in every moment of his kids and grandkids being unified and happy. It’s watching your brother laugh and make jokes having everyone else at the table laughing.

For me and my family, we don’t get together much. Our family is pretty small as it is. On birthday’s one is always missing from the bunch, understandably, as life has us busy. Christmas, though, is one that we try to be present for every year, even if it is for a short while. Maybe it’s because we get the day off from work so that gives us the time to actually gather. Or perhaps it is the gifts!

Christmas for me, however, brings warmness to my heart. It reminds me that once again this year, we all made it, we survived another year. We may have argued, but got over it, and we do mean something to each other, afterall. To me, it means respect. We all may have other plans or probably even have more entertaining places we could be at, but we choose each other. We choose family over anyone else. We choose to show up for one another. WE choose us.

The year 2020 was hard for many families. People can sit there and say the Coronavirus was a hoax and is not real, but that may be because you have been blessed beyond measure this time around… Families lost their father’s to this. Someone’s Mother didn’t make it. Parent’s are broken from losing their child because, yes, Children can get it, did get it, and died from it. Have a heart and don’t be so selfish, but take this as a reason to count your blessings this year.

If you are blessed enough to have your family still alive and safe this year, cherish it, because not everyone was as lucky. As for me and my family, we will not be gathering as we do take the precautions serious due to having elderly parents with underlying conditions. As much as we want to be together and have been hoping things would have been different by this time, we wouldn’t dare put them or each other at any risk. As I truly believe, I can stay away for a few months to have many more years with them. And if something were to happen within those few months, I will know it wasn’t due to my carelessness.

This does not mean that Christmas is canceled for us. Yes, we will be away from each other this time around, but facetiming, skyping, and video calling is still there for times as these. A drive-by, as we all live near one another, isn’t off the table. And of course, the gifts can still be dropped at the porch, if any were bought. We will miss each other as this is something that has never been done our entire lives, but we understand it is best for us and we each appreciate and respect it.

This is a reminder to enjoy your family in whatever way you choose to spend this holiday. Take in the laughs, and smiles, and Joy. As we learned this year, we can all be taken from each other at any random moment with no reason, no warning. This Christmas remember those who have always been in your corner. Always picked you back up after falling. And those who you hold dear to your heart. Take this time to love unconditionally and make memories. Merry Christmas!