Monday, August 12, 2024

What We Leave Behind

 The phone call woke me.

“You probably don’t remember me, but I’m (name removed).  I used to work for your parents.”


“Of course I remember you.”


“I dreamed about your parents’ store last night, and I wanted to tell you.”  She then proceeded to talk about the store, but she kept repeating the same sentence through the conversation.  “And your momma told me I could do anything well.”  


I’m sure over forty years has passed since my mother complimented her, but that one kind and generous comment had stuck with this woman through all those years.  


Our stories are like that.  Readers remember the emotional glow of a character who has achieved her positive goal, who chooses kindness over cruelty, who wins against darkness.  It’s what makes some stories memorable and others quickly forgotten.  


The light, not the darkness, is what many of us leave behind when our stories are finished.


When things are bad, remember that.  It is a wonderful legacy.

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