We tend to forget.
Things happen we think we will remember for the rest of our lives, but new experiences crowd them out. Moments we struggle for years to achieve fade into the forgotten past. People who teach us things that change our lives get lost in the crowds that surround us.
We become intrigued and distracted. We can lose sight of what is important to us in the swirling tides of urgent demands. We get so caught up in winning and earning we forget about what inspires us.
We set aside weekends for remembering, but we spend them running errands and grilling hotdogs.
It takes practice to remember well.
Remembering well means we choose what we intend to remember. We make decisions, set our priorities, commit ourselves.
We practice remembering the way we would practice a sport. We set aside time regularly to train and strengthen our ability to remember like a muscle. We exercise our memories. Remembering well takes time and effort.
Remembering well is not limited to recalling our experiences. Remembering grows deeper and produces wisdom as we reflect on what we can recall. We spend time contemplating our memories, letting them live in us. We experience them in new ways. We begin to find things we have missed. We begin to see them in new perspectives.
The people, the ideas, the emotions, the experiences that have shaped us come back to visit us again. We spend time living with them, remembering and reflecting. We grow in understanding and are shaped again, gaining new insights.
We remember, allowing the past to wash over us in the present and continue to shape us for the future.
How will you take time to practice remembering well this week?
What do you intend to remember today?
[Image by jenny downing]
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