'Tis the season.

It's Memory Season. I'm sorry. Were you expecting me to say "holiday season"? Well, of course, you're right. But when you think of Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's, maybe Kwanzaa or Hanukkah, doesn't it bring back memories? Holidays are family time and family time creates memories or stirs memories of the past. You remember that holiday as a kid. Thanksgiving with Gramma. Christmas morning with your siblings. New Year's Eve with a special loved one. Are they all still with you? Are they still reminding you what you did when...? You're lucky if that's the case. You are still re-living those memories every year. Sitting around the Thanksgiving table recalling how Gramma always makes her special pie or stuffing. How you overcooked or undercooked your first turkey. Your baby's first taste of pumpkin pie. You remember all those special occasions and more importantly why they were special. Who was there. What they said. How many conversations will start this year with "Remember when...?" or "I'll never forget..." But what happens to the stories when the story teller is not there? Will someone be missing this year, or next? What happens to those stories then? Who will "remember when"...then? If you know all the old stories, you are now the storyteller. What happens if you can't be there? What happens if you're the one that's gone next year? How do you make that special pie or stuffing? Did you get Gramma to tell the story of earlier Thanksgivings last year? Can she do it this year or is it your turn? Memories are only as good as the storyteller with the information. In native cultures, it's tradition to repeat the stories as history for new generations to know and re-tell. You've been meaning to write it all down or to tell someone else in the family who is willing, and able, to remember. Why? This is the year to do it...write it down, record it, scrapbook, whatever form you choose to preserve the memories. Oh, you can make plans to "git 'er done" after the rush of the holidays pass. But will you? Elaborate plans take time to plan, start, carry-out and see the project through. The hardest part is starting. Do you need a camera, video or audio recorder? Get it out NOW! Of course, you've got pies to bake, rolls to knead, vacuuming and dusting. Is a camera or digital recorder really going to be in your way or unsightly amidst your decorations, if you get around to using it? It's a move you will never regret. It might take time to get around to editing, whether it's video or audio, or if you plan to type out the recordings. But you won't regret taking that first step, and you're more likely to get around to working on that plan to finally write it down...to create a scrapbook, a digital photo book, a family history...the permanent memory that will be there when no one really remembers. No one will have to ask the question "do you remember when" when finally the actual memory may be gone. And you can be sure someone will "remember" even if you can't or you or the storyteller is gone. This is the year to make more of those memories than just more stories around the table. You can "write it down" regardless of what form you choose...just start.