Making Memories
Our family Thanksgiving took a devastating turn this past weekend when my father-in-law succumbed to his long battle against Alzheimer’s Disease. His last meal was turkey and mashed potatoes here in our home, with his family all around him. He was 82.
My husband and I have spent the past few days with our siblings, nieces and nephews telling stories about all the wonderful family memories we can remember. More than a few times, the phrase “I wish I’d only taken the time to…” came up in conversation.
The comments reminded me of something charter broker Leann Morris Pliske of The Sacks Group said when I interviewed her for my new book Have the Whole Boat: The Insider’s Guide to Private Yacht Charter Vacations: “I just recently had a slew of first-time charterers. One of them was a 60th birthday, and he was gathering multiple generations of his family. He just found us in a magazine and didn’t know what he was doing. I love those phone calls. … These people came back and they were just flabbergasted. The guy said, ‘God, I wish I hadn’t waited until I was 60 to try this.’”
I was reminded this weekend that it’s never too late to think about making wonderful family memories. They sure are comforting to have when sadness inevitably intrudes on our otherwise peaceful lives.