My sister often reminds me that I have a few years on her. She sent me a meme that said, “Sometimes I feel old, but then I realize my sister is older”
It makes me smile and I hold my tongue about the wisdom that comes with years. I don’t want to ruin her fun.
Time is such a strange phenomenon. I’ve never been quite good at remembering dates, but I have a fondness of remembering moments. I’ve never been quite good at accepting years as mile markers of success. But I revel in the joys of being alive. Up until this week I had three sheep who were eighteen years old. Now there are two. They teach me a lot about aging. The orchard still calls them after all these years and they climb the hills with a bit more effort, but delight in the rewards they find beneath the trees. I honor their simplicity and am grateful for their company, however fleeting.
Passages. There are many leaving us these days, the famous and the not so famous. Some I have never met, yet learning about their lives and efforts leave lasting impressions on me. Some I have only known for brief moments, yet their kindnesses, smiles and laughter still ring in my ears and touch my heart. I suppose it is a bit blasphemous to prefer to hold memories close rather than to mourn. But my understanding is this: grief washes over us; there is no wall that can stop the flood of emotion, but we don’t need to be washed away by the sadness. Rather, let us live well, to honor those who have gone before us.
What a glorious tapestry is woven into living.
let kindness win 