Dear Readers,
Certain world and national events have had such an impact on us that the very mention of a date or place can conjure up memories of those events – World Trade Center, Pearl Harbor, Columbine, Hiroshima or Dealey Plaza.
I have vivid memories of President Kennedy’s assassination, the Challenger explosion, and the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, just to name a few. I recall where I was and who I was with when I heard the devastating news.
I also vividly remember certain local events – the tornado that ravaged my hometown, the collapse of a prominent bridge not far from my house, and a gunman who went on a shooting rampage inside our local federal building. I remember these events as if they happened yesterday.
As horrible as these events were, I prefer to remember the good things I’ve experienced in my life – weddings, births, vacations, and visits with family and friends.
Last year, a friend sent me a story titled Sand and Stone. It talks about two friends on a journey through a desert. At one point, they argue. One friend slaps the other – who then writes in the sand about his hurt.
Later, when the two friends come upon an oasis, they bathe in the water. The one who was slapped starts to drown, and his friend saves him. The rescued friend then writes about that experience on a stone.
The moral of the story is that it’s better to write your hurts in sand, which drifts off with time, and to write the good things in stone, which never fades away.
Love, Kate Marchbanks
