I find myself swept back into my childhood today. Memories breeze by and I try to hold them for just a moment longer. Lost before I can pull them closer but not before I can feel them in my heart…if for just the briefest of time.
Time…it eludes us while marking our presence here, doesn’t it? Time moves forward like a marching band whether we try to step in its way or ignore it while passing us by. Its presence made known no matter what anti-aging creams we buy or pills we take. Sigh…and so we fight time yet we also find ourselves floating in it down the river of life.
My essence is full of colorful memories from childhood. I often desire to recollect and pull them close. Many of them include my mother’s vibrant family. Such an extroverted bunch of witty sprites who loved laughter and telling of stories and laughing some more. My mother has passed and so has an older brother and two younger brothers. There are now only 3 siblings left of that roaring bunch of my childhood. I am quite aware of what time can take from us.
My father’s family was more reserved, stoic yet loving in their ways. My grandmother was always, always busy in the kitchen through most of our big family get-togethers and my grandfather found his spot in an “ out of the way” chair as he watched us quietly. Good times, good food and reconnecting took place many times in their unassuming home in an unassuming little town. It was good, it was full and it was comforting. And we would find ourselves catching up on each other’s lives and then packing back up to return home. Now our homes are far apart, that unassuming house belongs to another. My aunt that I so admired is gone and my father, and likely his brothers, have found their spots in an “out of the way “ chair, as they watch us quietly.
Memories…gently float in front of me as I reflect with much nostalgia. I always felt the love of family surround us. I always experienced the river of stories as they flowed and the quaking of laughter as it rose at the kitchen table. Never disappointed at the ability of my family to enjoy each other…truly engage and embrace family with undeniable love.
So time can steal our tomorrows in the middle of the night, cloud up today while the sun still shines, and even distance us from the roads of yesterday. But time can not strip us from the love of family and the ties of those who have come before us. Time can not break the bonds that form in childhood and the memories of our youth that are etched within our heart. Time will only tell… us that we should not take life lightly but live and love with a fullness and not regret tomorrow. Time will only tell… us that love is forever in its truest form and holds families together. Time will only tell… how long we have here, yet will never share what tomorrow brings. Yet I will love my family…all of them…until the end of time…and beyond.
My whispers in the wind - Charlsey Jane 