Last night, I attended my aunt’s Zoom remembrance/memorial/whatever you call these things now. And it was lovely because she was lovely. It was full of brilliant, funny stories and anecdotes and kindness.
But one person stood out among all the beautiful articulate people who spoke. It wasn’t the Congressmen who did a lovely job. It wasn’t the head of a nonprofit or the athletic director of UNH.
It was a five-year-old girl named Grace.
She sat on her mom’s lap, stared patiently at the computer, waiting her turn for well over an hour. Or at least it seemed like she did.
And when her turn came? She blew me away. You have to imagine Grace’s quote with this clear, articulate, pausing-between-most-words, five-year-old’s voice, absolutely convinced in the confidence of her statement and that confidence? It’s deserved.
Here’s what Grace said.
I’m here to tell you that Aunt Max is still alive. She’s in our memory. Memory is a special magic that survives in your whole life.
Grace
So many of my friends hurt today and so many days because they miss people, because they blame themselves for other’s deaths, because they long and grieve.
But here’s the thing that Grace knows and I want you to know.
Memory is a special magic that survives your whole life.
And that memory keeps people alive and it can keep the ideas of those people alive. What they loved. What they worked for. What they believed. Their intrinsic values.
That works for countries and communities too.
The job of the living is to embrace that special magic but also use it to shape ourselves, your own families, our communities and our futures.
Dog Tip for Wednesday
It’s easy sometimes to give everyone (especially cats) some side-eye, but giving back to your community, your world?
It’s more than writing a check. It’s about taking a chance, making a life connection, touching someone.
You don’t have to be perfect. Just reach out.
xo
Sparty Dog