What is your favorite season? Why? Do seasons have associations that bring people, events or both to your mind? Fall is officially beginning on the 21st. Summer is officially gone. The seasons mean more to me now that I have ALS. I wonder every time the seasons change what this time next year will look like. I don't know what they will hold, but I do know that I have memories from the past that stand out strongly in my mind. Memories of immense joy birdwatching in Morgan Monroe Forest in the crisp fall air . Memories of confusion, deceit, grief, pain and betrayal in the midst of Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years. The common denominator in these memories are relationships. One day, when we look back on our lives, we will have a "stock" of memories to sort through. My prayer for you, for your wife or husband, for your children, your parents and your other loved ones is that you are able to make a special effort to make memories worthy of the feelings you share for one another. That you would be intentional in making those people know that you love them in the midst of whatever you do. It is amazing how the sights, sounds and smells of the seasons are so unique and how those things evoke such strong memories even years or decades later. I don't remember what my paycheck was that emotionally devastating holiday season, or even what kind of car I was driving when I went bird watching in the bare-treed forest. I remember the persons involved. I remember the way I felt. Those are the lasting things.
Love someone (love them more than your stuff, more than your job, more than your social status or more than your resume', more than your SELF) this fall. You won't regret it. Love, Claudia
