Happy Memories

[Ti Vu]

I'm not sure how old I was, I think maybe 14 or 15. It was a Sunday, my uncle and aunt drove my brother and me to Downtown Disney, which is like a boardwalk (not really) right at the gates to Disneyland. Literally 50-60 feet away if that. I don't have any word that comes to mind at the moment, maybe like an outdoor mall/outlet? It's just a nice place with awesome stores left and right. A Lego store, Disney Store, Rainforest Cafe, perfume stores, clothing stores, popcorn booths, those little spots where kids (and adults:)) get their face painted or where you can get your name painted in all kinds of styles. They have the ESPN Zone, a House of Blues concert venue where I attended my first concert ever. They have it all. It's just a beautiful place to be. Seeing kids and parents, families, couples, friends having a fun time.

And going there around Christmas time is absolutely... magical, you know? I can't describe it. Overwhelmingly beautiful. Lights, decorations, music, shows, combined with the nighttime, nice, chilly weather that makes your nose turn kinda red and sniffle. There's this store there that sells decorations. (Or used to sell. I haven't been back in ages.) And come Xmas time, they set up those little towns and scenes. With the little train running through and everything. We would walk around the store and look at them and how cool and unique they were. Some towns had fire stations and streets, others had a bridge and a frozen pond with little ice skaters, a nice neighborhood, rows and rows of classic looking houses from the 50's and such. They were really detailed and beautiful.

Anyway, this memory doesn't really have a point, I just love going there and looking back on the good times. :)

 

[Britt.f7]

Watching my son cross the stage to accept his diploma. Recent memory, but magical.

 

[Deleted member 29920]

Playing with my best friend Steven when we were small :)

 

[Recovery4Me]

A Sun bear sitting in my driveway, scratching his belly, watching the Monarch Butterflys.

 

[Recovery4Me]

One of my favorite memories is of Aunt Allie's mule named Tom. He would shake the pear tree with his hindlegs and eat everything that fell...then lay and roll on the grass with his swollen belly to the sun and bray about it. She get so mad she come after him with her broom! lol But ole' Tom didn't care...he would just snort and walk juuuust fast enough so her broom swoosh the air in vane. :clown: I think he liked that game almost as much as the pears.

 

[jaccat]

When I was 10 my school entered me and some other children into a 3 mile fun run. It was an open competition, there were all sorts of people running. They split us into male and female, setting the men off first. Then it was the women's turn.

I remember running off and ending up on my own. It was so peaceful running along quiet country roads. It was a warm day and it started to rain, which felt great as the water kept me cool. I barely saw a soul until, towards the end of the race I came across a man jogging at about my pace. I kept track with him. He was nice. We chatted about the joy of running. Then we rounded a corner and saw the finish line, down a long green bank. I remember distinctly the man saying to me off you go then and I sprinted off down the hill and across the finish line. Everyone was cheering. It turned out I'd come in third.

 

[Changing4Best]

My grandmother who we called Nana loved us so much. She would make us cookies and give us a glass of milk when we were kids. I still drink skim milk now, while I am in my 60s. It is healthy for me, because it helps to prevent osteoporosis, a disease that weakens the bones. (It hits women more often than men, so that makes milk even more valuable for us! She would give me some crayons and paper and we would draw pictures for her. She was always so happy with our efforts in drawing. We were both moved, my sister and I, to pursue artistic endeavors as adults. My sister photography and myself painting.

 

[Deleted member 29920]

Doing things with my grandmother when I was small, watering the flowers, making shapes with dough cutters, playing snap, splashing in my paddling pool in her back garden, the silly hand game where she would put her hand on top of mines, then I put mine on hers and so on until we went faster and faster and just laughed.. So many good things about my gran :) I miss her but smile when I remember the good things.

 

[Changing4Best]

Yesterday, at a Dr.'s office, I was reading a magazine and I saw a photo of a table that looked like one we used to play with when I was a kid.

Our table had a stand in its center with these little hilly extensions going out from under it on the floor to keep it standing upright. Each of these legs were grooved with little cuts in them that were the exact size of a marble. So we used to roll our marbles down them over and over again and then see how far our marbles would roll on the floor out from under the table. I think we did this for hours and hours, never getting bored with it. It was just a way to pass the time on rainy days, I guess. This table was in our basement, so we would not disturb our sleeping parents early in the mornings when we played there.

We also used to always play in our socks, never shoes. Mom would always nag us to put our shoes on, but before she got up, we could play in our socks, so we did, calling ourselves the "Sock Club." Sometimes we would go upstairs and slide along the floor on our socked feet, gliding and running, but trying to be quiet, so as not to wake the parents.

We did not need expensive toys, often finding ways to amuse ourselves with next to nothing.

 

[Recovery4Me]

I am glad to see this thread revived and added to so sweetly. I think one of the light bulb moments for me in seeing this thread again, is that I have added many wonderful memories within this time on the board and in my 3-D life. So many members here, have shared current beautiful pictures of home, achievements, nature, nurturing, guidance and humor that I must admit my life has really changed for the better in so many ways.

To have joyful memories of compassion, to now hold in my mind the present appearance of my Son and his Wife, to reflect on some of the recent family outings, to have a better understanding of PTSD and how to still garden the positive until it blooms fosters many current happy memories. I like this fact that I do not have to dig so deep in the past, to find the happiness that we all deserve. Much thanks and hugs to all.

 

[Ronin]

Fencing with friends.

So much light & giggles & pure focus.

 

[Changing4Best]

Climbing trees...