Making Memories..

As a society, we have been taught to work hard, play hard, earn money, buy things, aspire to have the biggest car, best home, provide the best education for our children and to have the perfect life.

All the wonderful things you can have and achieve if you want to and if you dream big and work for it. But is that all that there is to to life?

I look at people everyday who live in informal settlements, who take a bus to work, they do not have the latest technology, contract phone, flatscreen tv or even a fridge filled with expensive food. What they do have is a life filled with awesome memories.

Sure enough, they are worried about where their next meal is going to come from, when they will be able to get a home that has solid walls, where their next income will come from and whether they will ever get out of the slumps of living in squalor. But speak to anyone of them and ask them if they are happy. Truly happy as a family. Many will answer with a resounding yes. Yes they are happy that they have their family with them. Yes, they are grateful for the plate of food they have because they are able to share it together. The point being that they are together. They are families who pray, eat, drink, talk, laugh, cry and share everything together.

Compared to the people who are striving and working so hard to achieve the best for their families, but at the end of the day, are so tired that they miss out on the essential and pivotal moments of laughter and growth in their own children.

I was thinking about how little time we make to create the very memories that contribute to who we become as adults. You know those memories, like when your dad read a story to you or when you got washed away by a freak wave and your mum hauled you out and became your hero. The love that grew in those moments can never be replaced by the obscure memory of when you got a new playstation or watched tv all day long.

Nowadays, we are just content to buy the latest gadgets for our kids and shower them with inane gifts to cover up our guilt for not spending quality time with them. Toys are there to be ooohed and aaaahed over for a paltry 10 minutes then launched into the -to be forgotten - box.

Whatever happened to us letting go and encouraging our kids to take a walk with us in the afternoons just to feel the wind in our hair and count the number of red cars that pass us by.
What has happened to us that we have forgotten to be spontaneous enough to jump into the car on a school night and go the beach, grab an ice cream and meander aimlessly to soak up the gorgeous night lights and stars whilst listening to the crashing of the waves against the endless sleepy sands..

Memories do not just live in the form of a photograph. They live in the deep hidden recesses of ones heart, mind, body and soul. It lives on for an eternity, ready to be pulled up suddenly when triggered off by a song, touch, thought or gentle reminder.

We feed off our memories in times of joy, pain, sadness and love. We thrive on their very existence to add to our own lives and how we choose to live it.

In our darkest hour, we haul up the best memories - mainly the ones that did not cost a cent to create - to help us heal in our time of need.

Think about it...when we die..as we are all bound to..what memories will your children, spouse or family have of you? Is it ones where they reminesce about how hard you worked and the beautiful home (or debt) you left behind or will it be that you loved them with all of your heart, being there when they needed you the most?

My aim is to create memories where I listened to them when they spoke, was thoughtful in my giving, spontaneous in my random acts of fun and spending time and money on adventures. Even though it may not be the latest gadget or toy, the fun interaction is thoughtful and more meaningful in its giving and excitedly recieved by all that I interact with.

Children are not interested in how much money you can spend. They are interested in you as a person. They are sitting there waiting in impatient anticipation for the knowledge and wisdom that you have to share with them. Make life an adventure of discovery. Plant a tree with your kids, take a walk, lie on the grass, play in the rain, embrace life in its simplicity.

After all, making memories is free. It does not take money..it takes something more precious than that - It takes your time.

So live each day as if it is your last and make it meaningful to you and the very people around you that you are working so hard to provide for. Give them your time!



Play in the park..Just Coz..it is fun to do so..

Play in the rain..be rebellious and let your inner child shine..

Howl at the moon..or sit outside with a mini picnic at night...nature has a gorgeous way of inspiring us with her beauty..lets take advantage and revel in it..!!

until the next time,
take care and have fun!
Arthie Moore