Creating Memories

Happy Friday, Friends!

I hope and trust this post finds you all having a great day on this glorious new Friday morning! I am not writing this Happy Friday from my Sweet Home Alabama, but rather in a hotel room in Illinois as my Beautiful Bride, youngest Tender Warrior, and I are visiting our oldest son, Payton. It has been so awesome seeing his friends, spending time together exploring the place that he has called home for the past two years, and today we get to go watch him work and take in a baseball and soccer game...a blessed life indeed! :)

This morning I want to encourage us all to reflect, determine if what we are doing is leading to where we want to go, and to be intentional moving forward. I will start with a simple question; what memories are you creating?

If you stop and think about it, we are all creating memories, aren't we? We tend to think of memories as big and grandiose, however if you really think about it, we are creating memories in all things, big and small. It certainly could be  a memory of a big event or a big trip, however it can also be a memory of how we handled an adversity, how we treated a broken person, or simply how we approach each day. What memories are you creating?

The reality is that for all of us one day this will all end. The striving for whatever it is we are striving for, the trips, the ballgames, the shopping, etc. It will all come to an end and all that will be left of us is the memories that those we were blessed to do life with, to have in our lives, carry in their hearts and minds. Will these memories bring smiles and joy or dread and regret? While they will certainly miss us, just as we miss those who have passed, will their memories of us be launch pads forward or hurdles they have to overcome? These are things that you and I can, and will, choose. What memories are you creating?

I want to share three memories with y'all this morning.

1. My Nano and Grandpa had one of those aluminum awnings on their back porch. For those who have lived there, you know in late summer in Arizona you get monsoons. Still one of the coolest things ever to me - all day it can be clear, sunny, and very hot. Within about 30 minutes the skies will turn dark and there will be the most spectacular thunderstorms. As soon as the first drop of rain would hit that aluminum awning, my Nano would go in an start popping popcorn. My Nano, Grandpa, and I spent hours sitting under that awning, eating popcorn, counting from the time we saw the lightning until we heard the thunder to determine how many miles away the strike occurred. It is very rare that I am in a thunderstorm that I cannot smell that popcorn or see in my minds-eye my Nano and Grandpa sitting under that awning.

2. On one side of my Nano and Grandpa's yard they had a whole bunch of oleanders.  For those of you who are unfamiliar with an oleander, it is "a shrub or small tree" and it "is cultivated worldwide in temperate and subtropical areas as an ornamental and landscaping plant." Now, that is the official stuff. To a little boy? They had these long, flexible branches that made great bows and arrows. And my Grandpa made me, probably, hundreds of them! We would go out and look for the perfect one to make a bow. He would whittle down the ends and then make notches on each end. He would then take string and attach it to each end, putting just the right amount of tension in the bow, and then tie it off. We would then look for smaller pieces of wood that would become my arrows. He would whittle these too - making what I thought was a sharp point on one end and then putting a notch in the other end that would fit perfectly into the string of my bow. And I have to share this; he always used the same knife. I don't know the name of it but it was so impressive. It had what I think is white ivory on each side. It always seemed so sharp to me and it was so impressive...it was Grandpa's! A few years ago my sweet sister brought me a bunch of stuff that had belonged to Nano and Grandpa in a box. Guess what was in that box? That knife! The sides are now yellowed from being held by my Grandpa for so many years however it is still very sharp. Guess what my favorite knife is? Which one I usually take with me when Landry and I go fishing?

3. Every spring, for I don't know how many years, I would always go stay with Nano and Grandpa in the spring. I really don't know how that worked...must have been spring break. Doesn't matter! Here is what matters; every afternoon Grandpa and I would go to Hi Corbett Field in Tucson and watch the Cleveland Indians in Spring Training. We would always go in, get our peanuts and a soda, walk down the 3rd base line and sit right by the bullpen. We would then sit there for hours, watching baseball and talking. I am literally smiling as I type this...when Grandpa would try to tell me a story that he though was funny, he would get so cracked up he could hardly tell me the story! I loved it. We saw some great ballplayers - Dave Winfield, when he was with the San Diego Padres, sticks out in my mind the most - and we had some great experiences - as one of their promotions I once got to go out on the field and hit pitches from Bob Feller - one of the all-time great Indians. And while all those things were neat, what I remember most is just being with Grandpa. And guess what I absolutely love to do to this day? Go to a baseball game. Doesn't really matter who is playing. If I had my preference, we would sit along the 3rd baseline, and yes, I always get peanuts and a drink as soon as I get to the stadium.

Other than the costs associated with the baseball games, please note, these things did not cost money. It was just a little boy and a Grandpa. He was fully present and he simply loved me...those are my memories. And I was always amazed by his patience...I am still hoping and praying I grow to become half the man he was in that area. He made me feel as though everything I wanted to do was exactly what he wanted to do at that moment.

So, Sweet Friends, what memories are you and I creating? Be sure, we are creating them. If someone were to sit down and write down their memories of us in 40 or 45 years, just as I have done of my Nano and Grandpa this morning, what will they be? Will they smile? Will their hearts be filled with joy? Will they be taken back to a great place? What memories are we creating?

Please don't hesitate to contact me if there is ever anything I can do for you or your family. I will always help you any way I can. You can reach me at kevin@whatwillyourinfluencebe.com.

Have a great day, a wonderful weekend, please cherish your precious families, and please stay well!

Kev