You wanna make a memory?

There are several different recipes for memories. There are good memories and bad memories. Childhood memories, best friend memories. Love, loss, birth and death, all kinds of memories. All you need is a moment in time, you can add friends or loved ones. The setting can be different for everyone. You just have to remember. Becket suggested that I start writing down my memories. In case the diagnosis comes back to Alzheimer's. The more I say it the more I am ok with it. Alzheimer's. Hmm. Maybe it wouldn't be such a bad idea. After all there are so many uncertainties in life. If I died, what would my kids know of my memories.

But where do I start? Like last night, Friday, I went out with Jen. Jen and I are "newer" friends. We got to know each other a lot better last night. We talked about life and love. Hope and heartbreak. She shared memories of her dad, who died last year. I like to listen to other peoples memories, they tell you so much about a person. Her memories were so full of love and happiness. You could see that she loved her dad. Her Doodle.

I shared a memory with Becket, and I am going to share it here as well. This is one of those memories that my sisters and I all remember. Its fun to see what they remember of it and what I remember. But here it goes.

My sister Dana had kidney issues when she was little. She was in and out of the hospital a lot before she turned five. I was always afraid when she got sick. I was only 7 or 8 when she got sick one time and we decided we needed to cheer her up when she got home. We gathered all our friends and made a plan. Dana's favorite thing was Care Bears. So we were going to do a parade for her. Paper bags were the way to go back then, so everyone had a ton of them. We got markers and crayons and pencils and scissors and set out to make Care Bear masks. We cut arm holes and eye holes. We picked colors and tummy symbols. We made signs, I don't remember what they said but we had them. When everything was colored and taped and cut we went around the block and told my mom we were ready. My mom and Dana sat on the deck. We marched around the corner singing our songs and waving our signs. High step marching and arms swinging. Micci, Stephanie, James, Kathy, Freddy, Buffy , I believe Angie and Rachael and me. All of us coming together to make Dana smile.

I am 35 now, I don't find occasion to put paper bags on my head, but I would be more than happy to get the bags and markers and scissors out again if it would make a memory for someone else to love.

~~~~~CANCUN UPDATE~~~~~

Yes I did it, I finally got it together. I got the numbers and added them together and consulted my maps and I have  a location. We are in Catemaco, Veracruz-Llave, Mexico. A town with a population of 46,702 people. One of the featured attractions of the town are the "Monkey Islands", populated by monkeys originating in Southeast Asia, who were imported for an abandoned research project. (2)Almost 100 boats compete to ferry tourists out to see these Macaque monkeys imported to the islands in the 1970s.

We are 671 miles from Cancun. I am so excited!.!.

Becky and I started mall walking last week and I am planing on being there a lot this next week.

So here we are at the end. Time for a prayer and some sleep.
Dear God, Thank You for today. Thank You for old friends and new. Thank You for loving me. I pray that continue to be with Becket. She is hurting right now and needs You. Please be with me this week and in the weeks to come. Help me to be a good parent, wife, sister, daughter and friend. In Your name we pray. Amen