Tuesday 16 December 2008

Reflecting on the Good Times

Back in November I wrote a post called 'A Sacred Bond' about friendship, which was brought about by meeting up with a high school friend I hadn't seen since 2002.

Our afternoon was spent recalling times gone by and filling each other in on what had happened in our lives over the last 6 years. Our conversation was punctuated with statements such as 'remember when we did....', 'whatever happened to.....' and of course the one we all liked to hear.....'you know you haven't changed one bit, except for your hair colour.'

We both laughed and smiled as we recalled the good times and the great experiences we had shared over the 30 odd years we had known each other. Each event we discussed triggered another recollection and everything we talked about centred on the good times and only served to energise each of us during the course of the afternoon.

Almost simultaneously, right at the end of our time together, we both said how much we both enjoyed it and that we must do it again. We agreed to catch up again early in the New Year, then said our goodbyes.

Over the past few weeks I have revisited and replayed in my mind all that we had talked about. I realised just how important it is to have regular reminders of the good times in our lives and to be able to take the time to reminisce, for so much of what we have done in our lives, shapes us and makes us who we are today and beyond.

I was fortunate enough to have had the chance to catch up with my girlfriend and reflect on those good times. It was somewhat like looking at an old photo album that you have found stored away in a cupboard in your house, there before your eyes are lots of wonderful memories in print that take you back to that time and place, and most importantly to those people who are in the photos.

It also made me realise when you get caught up doing what has to be done in the moment, how easy it is to forget the people you have met in your life who have made a positive impact on and enriched you, often in only the smallest of ways.


My good mate Rod and I back in January 2006 - A delightful pose for the camera!


The special little boy in my life - Joseph & I, August 2008 - Asking for chocolate!


The crew I was with while barging in France, June 2008 (minus Linton who took the photo) - Why do I always have my mouth open!!

Rwanda November 2006 - The Children watching footage of themselves in my video camera.

12 comments:

Lilly said...

Its so true. We too often focus on the what ifs, whys, why cants, should bes instead of the happy memories. Thanks for the reminder. I love the photo of the picture of you with Joseph. You have a great smile.

Jennifer Chronicles (jenx67.com) said...

i love these picture of you - especially the last one surrounded by the children. I don't think I reflect on the good times enough! Thanks for inspiring me to do that.

Pink Heels said...

This is such a beautiful blog filled with incredible reflection.

Ron Simpson said...

Love the post and the pics .. and you do have a great smile ..

Mom is in Germany (she was born in Freising) for Christmas. She is about 20 miles from Munich .. I am envious that it is a two hour drive to several foreign countries .. 2 hours in any direction from my house and I am still in Kentucky .. now, dont get me wrong, KY is a beautiful place .. But i am envious at times of those that have such diversity so close.

I love seeing your travels. Kinda visiting vicariously

Anonymous said...

Thank you! Thank you! for posting this and posting these pictures. It makes me smile to see your smiling face! I posted a picture of my family today in honor of my daughter's graduation. Not my most comfortable moment to do so but we are who we are...aren't we. Our friends are a part of who we are and our past is as well. I am loving the music as I read this post!!

Roban said...

I so enjoyed reading this tonight. It's nice to stop and think about the good times in our lives and the people who touched us with kindness, generosity, or just plain understanding.

Looking at your pictures and seeing your great smile bring a smile to my face, too. You really do seem to have this "fun" thing under control. I'm so glad to be sharing a bit of your life with you... even via the Internet!

(And your music always hits just the right note with me!)

Enjoy your day!
Roban

Anonymous said...

Beautiful sentiment, lovely photos of friends and one of my all-time favourite pieces of music 'In My Life'. It goes SO well with your words.CJ

Meow said...

Namaste Peggy :)

I so agree with you that it's very easy to forget those people who once made our life's moments so special while we are stuck in the cobweb of life.

Just sitting aside for sometime, remembering good times & smiling all to ourselves about something we once shared with a friend is a such a sweet experience.

May be the coming year will give us many more opportunities to try & catch up with our old friends & add few more cherishable memories for future.

Love & Hugs,
Meow

McMGrad89 said...

Thanks for reminding us to remember the good times. I have been doing that lately with my friends from Facebook. We have been posting pictures of each other from High School and college laughing and joking with each other. You forget how fun those people were to be around and long to rekindle those friendships again.

Thanks for being my new friend. I look forward to cherishing memories of you in years to come.

Annemarie

Sherer said...

Very beautiful post. I think we can all focus and take a look and really try to consciously remember those around us. What else matters?

Jesse

Caroline said...

What an important reminder for us! We don't have to live in the past, but it's wonderful to go back and reflect. These people and situations made us who we are today...no need to forget them.

citiding said...

Wow, I admire your good life!