Childhood Memories, Good or Bad?

I am temporarily living in the childhood home I grew up in because I'm caring for my mother who is ill. Every night when I go for a walk, I pass the park where we used to play ball when it was an old vacant lot. There is a beautiful new house on a site that used to have a deep dirt depression in it where my cousins and I would to ride our bikes--our own dirt bike trail with jumps.

I traverse the jagged old brick wall next door to my house where my cousins lived. We spent hours playing on that wall, seeing who could make the loudest sound with a leaf whistle.

Blowing a leaf whistle

Some of my childhood memories are pleasant, some are not. What I choose to remember is important. If I remember only the sad or hard times, I'm cheating myself of the positive energy that can surround me. I'm denying myself the love and goodness that is part of my life.

I am grateful for the tough times when I got my finger caught in a do-it-yourself cement mixer, skinned my knees on my roller skates, and knocked my permanent front teeth, trying out my new bike. I gained character from those events, and they will always be part of my life. 

Is it possible for me to live through the dark times, learn the lessons they present me, and move on to the light? The answer for me is yes.

Here's how:

1.         Remember the good in your life.

2.         Add the depth of character that comes from the hard times.  
3.          Look inside yourself for the wisdom you've gained from living.

4.         Take time for reflection.

Each day as I meditate in the early morning hours before my mind is cluttered with the day, I spend a few minutes remembering positive childhood memories like sitting on the bank of the river fishing, watching the river float lazily by, or hanging over the old tree swing, just thinking. Spending a little time with my memories gives that child that I was happiness and peace before I begin my day.

Fishing on the Teton River

Hanging over the old tree swing