… but the emotions never die.

THE WORLD SERIES has come to Atlanta!! I was watching the recap of the Braves stunning third win last night over the Houston Astros. Peering through bleary eyes … after another third exhausting midnight TV vigil.

During post game interviews … “I remember …” was the constant refrain as Braves heroes were asked to answer the age old question, “How does all this make you feel?”

Get this.

“I remember playing in my back yard when I was seven years old. Pretending I hit a home run to win the World Series.” Dansby Swanson said this. He’s 26. 

“I remember my mom telling me how much she hoped I’d be in baseball someday.” Brian Snitker is 66. 

The events pass … but the emotions never die. Simply? We remember.

I write constantly about connections. These manifest themselves through our emotions. The spirit just always so touches us. 

 In 1980 the Philadelphia Phillies won the World Series. Game six. I’m in the box right next to the Phillies dugout. As I stood there? Wow … the crowd was so intense, so energized. It felt like an electrical chord had been plugged into my far head. Amazing. I’ve never forgotten that night. Today I shared this experience with a few of my more rabid Braves fans. Brought 1980 all back to me. I was right there.

1980 was 41 years ago.

 A loved one passes away. We grieve. Over time the hurt softens. It’s said we leave behind the memories of those who pass away. Eventually move on from them. No … we never leave them. Nor do they leave us. We deeply feel and process our emotions, then tuck them away in a special place in our heart. Only to be summoned months, years later. More distant maybe. But they never die. We don’t leave our loved ones. We lock them away. Only to unlock them, unexpectedly, when we choose to recall them. And then magically … experience and feel their presence all over again.

People pass … but the emotions, when we recall them … never die.

What urged me to write this morning? A song by the “Temptations.” The hugely popular soul group in the late 60s and 70s. As I listened to “My Girl” … their signature song, I was immediately connected, transported back to my senior year in college, fifty four years ago. To a concert in our college field house. The crowd, the stage… the chills. I pictured these magical performers as they did their thing. A song attached to strong emotions suddenly so fresh, rushed inside me? Like I was right there … all over again.

One of the gifts God bestows on us is the gift of memory, recall.  In my thoughts here? A question I posed in an earlier post …

Are we human beings living a spiritual life? Or are we spiritual beings living a human life 

Something to ponder. 

I marvel every time I see someone recalling an event, a loved one. Or even a special song. That takes them back … where time is no factor. And watch their emotions rise to the surface. Tears welling up as they do.

The events we experience, and the people we love … pass. But the emotions will never die.