First Published 19 September 2024

What makes up your Tapestry of Life?

Isn’t it amazing how quickly time slips by? 

Only 4 years ago, we were at the tail end of a warm summer of solitude and uncertainty.  Someone put the idea in my head that writing a weekly ‘newsletter’ was a good idea…  We were socially distancing, not spending time with friends in the real world and holidays & weddings were being postponed left, right and centre.

We were waxing lyrical about ‘getting back to normal’ and wondering if it would ever happen.  Have we learned from our experiences?  Do we do some things differently now?

For me – well, I am still writing these little ‘newsletters’ once a week and so I am going to celebrate that milestone as I complete 4 years and begin the journey to 5!

Anniversaries & Celebrations:

How important are anniversaries to you?  Do they serve as milestones in your life?  Remember as a child we spent time wishing for our next birthday so that we would be old enough, or big enough, or just because we wanted the gifts and cake that came with them. 

We marked the start of a school year with a photo in our shiny new school uniforms (that probably only stayed looking shiny and new until lunchtime) – we might not have had Social Media to share the images and in fact, depending on how quickly our parents finished that roll of film it might have been months before we actually saw the photos!

Do we still celebrate in the same way?

Perhaps the next birthday is coming around too quickly now, maybe filled with dread, or still joyous as it can bring with it an opportunity to spend the day with who you want and in the way you want – you don’t have to invite your whole class out for a McDonald’s party (although I think it was a Wimpy party in my case 😂).

When we cast our minds back to past anniversaries or to ones still to come – what emotions do they conjure?  Do we feel joy and nostalgia?  Is there a touch of sadness at times gone by, or maybe dread and anxiety at some to come.

Grief & Memories:

On the flip side – that dread and anxiety can be due to loss or fear.  Anniversaries also mark the points in life where we have suffered loss and discomfort.  

We perhaps can remember clearly where we were when we received bad news. 

There are some key moments I remember.  Like being in a computer lab at university when the news came trickling in that a plane had crashed into the Twin Towers (and the feeling’s of disbelief), or randomly being in Waterstone’s bookstore in Bristol when I got an alert on my phone that the Colombia space shuttle didn’t make it through it’s re-entry (which then triggered my memories of being 16 and in Florida watching that very shuttle launch!).

Memories are a funny thing.  

When news came to me this week about the death of my Uncle, I really didn’t know what to think or feel.  Shock, disbelief, stunned, sadness that I didn’t remember the last time I spoke to him were just a few of the thoughts and emotions running through my mind.

When I logged off for the day the thoughts were still playing through my mind, not really ever settling.  Then I walked into my bathroom and remembered that he was the one who laid the floor and painted the walls of my bathroom.  And where I used to grimace at that little bit of paint I just couldn’t shift in the kitchen sink, I remembered it was the same uncle cleaning up the brushes after he painted my kitchen that was the cause of that annoyance… and I found myself smiling rather than feeling annoyed about that same stubborn bit of paint!

Yep, memories are funny things – and so can be the emotions attached to them.

The Ever-Turning Wheel of Life:

It doesn’t stop.  There isn’t a pause button.

It keeps moving forward, regardless of whether we want it to, or our personal experiences and situations.

So how do we make the best of it?  We celebrate – even the ‘meaningless’ milestones.  We look for the joy, meaning and beauty in our situation and the world around us.  And we share our experiences – over cake (why should the kids get all the good stuff!).

So today, on the 4th anniversary of my writing these ‘weekly waffle’ notes, I invite you to ponder on your life, and memories, and celebrations.

Feel free to share with me, with friends or family members, or with yourself in a journal or a voice note or a video note (even if you have no intention of sharing any further). 

Just take that moment to reminisce to keep the memories and emotions alive. 

Even the hard ones – as we can often find a golden nugget/lesson in those too.  After all, every single one of these experiences, memories and emotions have come together to create the tapestry of your life.

And celebrate another day on this little green and blue ball we can Earth.