Tomorrow comes a--n--d tomorrow goes.......
It’s a quiet kind of afternoon and I’m listening to favorite music as I write this.
Today has been one of memories.....even more so than usual. I answered the phone earlier this afternoon and found a voice from the past. One I never expected. The voice was not familiar and I surprised myself because when she asked if my name is Joanie I told her that it is. I always respond with "who may I ask is calling?" when an unknown caller asks me for my name. For some reason this time I said “yes” right away. It turned out to be one of Dick's first cousins who lives in Atlanta. She called to let me know that her Mom had passed away this past weekend and she had found a letter I had written just after Dick died in 2005. She said she wanted to call me because of the way I had addressed my envelope.....to "Aunt Ray M…..” rather than the usual, formal “Mrs. Brannon M.” Dick and I have always done this when we write personal notes to folks we really care about. “G” said after finding my letter she looked Dick up on the internet and found he had died. The listing showed our address and phone number and she recognized my name. She then looked me up on Facebook. She said when she saw my photo she remembered me
I remember a very caring phone call from Aunt Ray when she received my letter. At that time she told me news about her family, that she had moved from the home she and Uncle B had shared for so many years and she gave me her new address.
I am ashamed to admit that my memory has never been all that good, but as we chatted.....names, addresses, what surrounding looked like, a job “G” had when she was a teenager, etc. all came back to me one after the other. I surprised myself that this was so because I never really knew her well. We mainly knew her through her Mom and Dad. The last time I had contact with her was at a funeral/family reunion some 30+ years ago. During today's chat we did some catching up on the years since then and both agreed how sad it is that all too often years go by and family history and connections are lost. We all know this, but often we somehow let life get in the way and we don’t make the time to pass on family history that would be so important to those who come after us.
So many times since Dickie has been gone I have had folks tell me how special he was and how much it meant to them for him to have been a part of their lives. I know “G” would never had remembered me had it not been for the way she felt about him. He was a gentle spirit and it showed. She even remembered that he had been in Research and had several patents. I wrote in one of my very early journal entries that I knew he was well thought of during his life, but I never knew fully until after he was gone just how much he meant to others whose lives he touched.
As we live day-to-day our influence is felt much more than we ever realize.
“G” and I agreed how sad it is that we often miss out on so much because we let ourselves lose touch with family members and friends over the years.
As I write this I'm remembering a favorite poem of mine by Charles Hanson Towne:
Around the corner I have a friend,In this great city that has no end,Yet the days go by and weeks rush on,And before I know it, a year is gone.And I never see my old friends face,For life is a swift and terrible race,He knows I like him just as well,As in the days when I rang his bell.And he rang mine but we were younger then,And now we are busy, tired men.Tired of playing a foolish game,Tired of trying to make a name."Tomorrow" I say! "I will call on JimJust to show that I'm thinking of him",But tomorrow comes and tomorrow goes,And distance between us grows and grows.Around the corner, yet miles away,"Here's a telegram sir," "Jim died today."And that's what we get and deserve in the end.Around the corner, a vanished friend.
I am so glad that today happened. As I told “G”, I needed her call just now. As always, things seem to happen at the time they should, in the way that they should.
Even though I have been writing through tears of sadness today, the many happy memories make me know that life is good even though it is painful at times.
Oh, how I love and miss Dickie. My life has been so blessed to have had him in it.
Today has been one of memories.....even more so than usual. I answered the phone earlier this afternoon and found a voice from the past. One I never expected. The voice was not familiar and I surprised myself because when she asked if my name is Joanie I told her that it is. I always respond with "who may I ask is calling?" when an unknown caller asks me for my name. For some reason this time I said “yes” right away. It turned out to be one of Dick's first cousins who lives in Atlanta. She called to let me know that her Mom had passed away this past weekend and she had found a letter I had written just after Dick died in 2005. She said she wanted to call me because of the way I had addressed my envelope.....to "Aunt Ray M…..” rather than the usual, formal “Mrs. Brannon M.” Dick and I have always done this when we write personal notes to folks we really care about. “G” said after finding my letter she looked Dick up on the internet and found he had died. The listing showed our address and phone number and she recognized my name. She then looked me up on Facebook. She said when she saw my photo she remembered me
I remember a very caring phone call from Aunt Ray when she received my letter. At that time she told me news about her family, that she had moved from the home she and Uncle B had shared for so many years and she gave me her new address.
I am ashamed to admit that my memory has never been all that good, but as we chatted.....names, addresses, what surrounding looked like, a job “G” had when she was a teenager, etc. all came back to me one after the other. I surprised myself that this was so because I never really knew her well. We mainly knew her through her Mom and Dad. The last time I had contact with her was at a funeral/family reunion some 30+ years ago. During today's chat we did some catching up on the years since then and both agreed how sad it is that all too often years go by and family history and connections are lost. We all know this, but often we somehow let life get in the way and we don’t make the time to pass on family history that would be so important to those who come after us.
So many times since Dickie has been gone I have had folks tell me how special he was and how much it meant to them for him to have been a part of their lives. I know “G” would never had remembered me had it not been for the way she felt about him. He was a gentle spirit and it showed. She even remembered that he had been in Research and had several patents. I wrote in one of my very early journal entries that I knew he was well thought of during his life, but I never knew fully until after he was gone just how much he meant to others whose lives he touched.
As we live day-to-day our influence is felt much more than we ever realize.
“G” and I agreed how sad it is that we often miss out on so much because we let ourselves lose touch with family members and friends over the years.
As I write this I'm remembering a favorite poem of mine by Charles Hanson Towne:
Around the corner I have a friend,In this great city that has no end,Yet the days go by and weeks rush on,And before I know it, a year is gone.And I never see my old friends face,For life is a swift and terrible race,He knows I like him just as well,As in the days when I rang his bell.And he rang mine but we were younger then,And now we are busy, tired men.Tired of playing a foolish game,Tired of trying to make a name."Tomorrow" I say! "I will call on JimJust to show that I'm thinking of him",But tomorrow comes and tomorrow goes,And distance between us grows and grows.Around the corner, yet miles away,"Here's a telegram sir," "Jim died today."And that's what we get and deserve in the end.Around the corner, a vanished friend.
I am so glad that today happened. As I told “G”, I needed her call just now. As always, things seem to happen at the time they should, in the way that they should.
Even though I have been writing through tears of sadness today, the many happy memories make me know that life is good even though it is painful at times.
Oh, how I love and miss Dickie. My life has been so blessed to have had him in it.
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