Lots of Material

A few of us from the old Harley riding days had dinner last night at Lou’s house.  As the night went on, Frank looked over at me and said, “I bet you have lots of material to write about based on tonight.”  He was right. A get together with long-time friends always leads to discussions about memories of past adventures.

As I listened, I heard Lynnel talking with Frank and Denise about the last time they saw each other, which would have been 5-7 years ago.  While having dinner, we talked about the trips to Sturgis dating back to 1993.  From there, Lou talked about growing up in New York then moving to Memphis and being a hairdresser and on and on.  The stories went all over the place, but they all had something in common.  They were about the time we all spent together and the impact we have had, and continue to have, on each other. 

All too often we take people in our lives for granted.  We assume they will be there when we choose to have them there, we reschedule for no damn good reason, or we blow them off under the guise of thinking we will catch up later.  It’s all bullshit and lame ass reasons. For instance, this dinner came about from a discussion between Frank and me at Starbucks last Sunday about us all having dinner together, as he, and Denise had not seen Lynnel in years.  He in turn mentioned it to Lou that led to Lou offering to cook dinner, and I initiated the event through an email dialog and it happened. I could have easily blown it off or given it lip service but I didn’t.

Embrace the time you are afforded with the important people in your life.  Never take them for granted or assume they will be there.  Always and I mean always, let them know they matter and are important in your life. There are no do-overs my friends.  We all have lots of material.  Embrace and enjoy the material.  That’s what memories are made of and what makes life enjoyable.