You can't take it with you is a saying that has been around for as long as man kind could speak for good reason. The title was also made into a play, movie, and book which has been able to stand the test of time. There is one simple rationality as to why that is: because the notion is universal and relatable to all people.
When you live your life based on physical pleasures rather than emotional connections with the people you love and the places you see, at the end of it all you have nothing. We are born into this world with nothing and we leave with nothing but the experiences you've collected. Making the best of the life you have is necessary in order to feel fulfilled and happy and many people seem to forget that. It's so easy to be sucked into the rat race and hustle of life that is out there in the world. You work as hard as you could so you could make enough money so that you could live the life you always dreamed of. Sometimes we focus so much on the exertion we put into those goals that we forget to stop and smell the roses, so to speak. Sooner or later you'll look in the mirror and wonder how you even got to where you are and it will scare you because this life goes by so quickly and we don't realize it until it's too late. Our memories are like diamonds in the rough in a lot of ways. Some are beautiful glistening masterpieces, priceless beyond belief and some are foggy and irregular and need to be polished in order to see its true beauty. All of our experiences have the potential to be beautiful memories, it's just up to us to see them that way. The memories we keep are a part of a stable and permanent section inside of our brains. Moments are fleeting but the memories we subconsciously choose to keep close to us can stay as long as we allow them to. Memories give us the opportunity to commemorate our loved ones and our passed experiences long after they've gone. Without them, we would have nothing and be nothing. A person is only as strong as his mind allows and if that mind is filled with meaning, he will be the strongest by far. Nowadays, we are lucky enough to have the technology which enables us to keep our memories for longer. With the touch of a screen on our tiny phones, we can document anything and everything. Instagram, Facebook, Twitter-- these are all tools which can be used to help you jog your memory at any time. Every once in a while I like to go back to the beginning of my Facebook page (circa 2006) and read the things I posted and the interactions I partook in. Reminiscing on those times can't be traded for anything in the world to me that would be more enjoyable. There is literally nothing more comforting than laughing at how weird I was and how much more mature I feel today. Without those memories, I wouldn't be able to notice how much I've grown and changed. Our history gives us our story. Without our story, our character would not be able to develop and you would remain stagnant in your place in this universe. Without my life experiences that were tough, I would not be this strong. Without my happy memories from childhood, I would not be as thankful. Without my history, I would not have my knowledge. If someone were to offer me all the money in the world in exchange for my memories, I would easily decline in an instant without hesitation. After everything is said and done, you only take with you the good you did in this world and the feeling of contentment that you did that good. We are given the gift of being able to relive the moments we choose in our brains and remember what we saw and how we felt in that exact instant. If that's taken away, then what else is there?
2 Comments
Yadira Garcia
8/11/2019 05:12:06 pm
hello, I just happened to run across this article and I fell deeply into the words you have said about our precious memories and I would like to ask if I can use this as an inspiration for my senior quote?
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Shelly Greenstein
8/11/2019 06:35:00 pm
Hi, Thank you so much for reading! I would be honored if you used my work as inspiration for something so monumental. Congrats on graduating and good luck!
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AuthorShelly; A writer, aspiring journalist and/or popular culture personality. Archives
October 2015
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