Memories

“Memories are the treasures that we keep locked deep within the storehouse of our souls, to keep our hearts warm when we are lonely.”

        How many times have you smelled a smell and instantly been reminded of a memory that you thought was long gone? Or caught sight of a TV programme you used to watch when you were younger and immediately found yourself transported back there as if it were yesterday? The power of the mind never ceases to amaze and astound me.

              A long time ago, when my children were very young and I was all caught up in the day to day trudge of things, a very wise person gave me this advice....”Children are a blank canvas, be careful what you paint”. I asked her to explain this further and she told me that we are our children’s first teachers, we are their role models, and as such we are making their memories. She said that every activity that we share, however menial, has an impact that may only become obvious in later life. For example, adults may get fed up going to the same park with their children, to play on the same things all the time. To their child however, these play dates are of the utmost importance because they take in the environment, the smells, the colours etc turning each visit into a little treasure to be stored away for later.

       I was reminded recently of how, even the little things we do for our children make an impact. I asked my 15 year old daughter what she would like for dinner, only to be astounded by the request for “bangers and mash hedgehogs like you used to make when I was 4”. Her request was duly granted and she savoured every mouthful as if each one held a brand new memory for her. The hugs of gratitude I got afterwards were more than enough reward for me! In the same way, however, negative memories can also have an impact. When I hear parents shouting at their children, or slapping them I try not to judge. Instead I feel sad for them. Sad that their day has got to the point where they feel that is the only way to make their point, but also sad that their child will make a memory out of that situation. I am not perfect, and I have at times “lost it”, so I know exactly how these parents feel. I also know there is another way to deal with these pressures, and losing one’s temper never diffuses the situation: In fact it can very often exacerbate the problem.

                 So let’s go out there and create positive, happy memories for the people we love. Let’s paint vibrant, happy, balanced pictures on our “blank canvases”, while at the same time filling up our “storehouses to keep our hearts warm when we’re lonely”.

 SharonAnn