Les Mis and Mozzarella Sticks

 Yesterday morning, one of my friends went to Sheetz for biscuits.

“I didn’t know they had biscuits at Sheetz,” I said.

“Have you been to a Sheetz?” she replied.

“Yes. One time after going to see Les Mis with some friends.

We got mozzarella sticks and something else.

Why I remember that event with such details is beyond me,” I answered.

“Well. It’s basically like a fast food restaurant,” she stated.

And that was the end of the conversation.

 

But as I drove to get to lunch and thought about a litany of friends

As I passed various places along the way,

I realized that I am constantly thinking of and remembering

People who have impacted my life in some way.

Sometimes I pick up my phone and write.

Most of the time, I do not.

But I can pretty much guarantee that if we made memories together,

Then at least one of those memories is stored away in my brain

And will come back into consciousness

Whenever I see or experience something that reminds me of you.

For instance, every time I drive by a particular intersection,

I think of a friend with whom I had a conversation at that intersection while waiting for traffic to dissipate one day.

I drive by almost every day.

Or when I pass a local neighborhood sign, I think of a friend who lived there in high school.

Or when I pass CrossFit, I think of a friend who trains there.

Or when I hear “We Built This City on Rock ‘N Roll,” I think of a friend who loves the song.

Or when I go to Dollar Gentrald, I think of a friend whose grandmother named the store such, and I laugh.

Or when…

And the list could go on.

 

Sometimes, I imagine my prayer list as a post-movie credit reel.
I start from childhood and list everyone I can think of.

I continue this until I fall asleep or my brain wanders elsewhere.

 

It’s all the time,

Everywhere,

A constant reality,

I think of people,

I think of you,

And I offer the thoughts as prayers when I do.

 

May we be a connected people,

In thought and in action,

And may we hold one another in light and love,

Each time we remember going to see Les Mis and eating mozzarella sticks.

Amen.