Remember when you didn’t need a purse or wallet, when you ran everywhere, laughed at everything, and only worried about making it to dinner on time? Remember when taking on a dare gave you courage and you spent more time on friendships because you had more time?
When songs and stories take us back in time with an eye toward recalling important lessons, I believe we can find the wisdom and confidence we need to face the fears of growing up, taking risks, and growing old.
In preparation for a radio interview I gave last month, I was asked to list some of the lessons in Memory Lake. Of course, I’d prefer readers discover them on their own because they are woven into the novel, but that would not make ‘good radio’. So, to meet that challenge, I compiled the six main lessons of Memory Lake:
1) We are only as good as the company we keep.
2) A forever friend is a friend made, and kept, without pretense.
3) Jealousy springs from a limited sense of blessings and a belief there is not enough good to go around.
4) We all have been blessed with hidden talents and our task in life is to find them.
5) Growth happens when we challenge ourselves. If we only put ourselves in safe situations, we do not grow.
6) It is important to continually challenge ourselves and to find something of value from every mistake.
Number 6 is the reason I get up in the morning and do what I do. So, what are you doing today to challenge yourself?