Time In a Bottle

If you opened a time capsule from 1971, what would you find?

One of the many things I hope to find is an old vinyl record by Jim Croce, who wrote the soulful song, Time in a Bottle. How many remember it? Here is a teaser of how it began as I take you down memory lane…

If I could save time in a bottle

The first thing that I'd like to do

Is to save every day 'til eternity passes away

Just to spend them with you

These few lines of the song can awaken many different memories depending on where we were in our lives. Some might see it as an old geezer song from the past, others a memory from a college night contemplating a hopeful future. Still others, like Jim Croce, who wrote this reflective song the night he found out his wife was pregnant. The couple had been married for five years, and after meeting with a fertility specialist, the outcome was a baby. The joy was palpable. The new addition, the promises of a bright future, the exciting venture into a world of possibilities, and then less than 2 years later, Jim Croce's life was tragically cut short by a plane crash.

We all know that no one has a crystal ball for the future. As the song so aptly continues:

But there never seems to be enough time

To do the things you want to do once you find them

Ahhh, memory lane. We all have them. It may be 1989, 2000, 2010, or anything in-between.

This trip down memory lane is because we have earned the level of the historian. As elders, grandparents hold the key to the family's history and can offer grandchildren insight into their heritage, providing a sense of belonging. The role of a historian is ours, and the holiday season is a great time to dust off those history books. The low-hanging fruit is to tell stories at Christmas Eve dinner, on Christmas day, making cookies, caroling, and visiting neighbors. Tell stories about yourself, relatives, events, and family traditions.

My most memorable Christmas tradition was spending Christmas Eve in the basement of Auntie Jean's house. We all knew the holiday spirit and music could be heard as we entered the house. Down the dark stairs, we were greeted with hugs, hi's, and lots of love. There was always a minimum of 50 people coming and going with cousins, aunts, uncles, and of course, the visiting Santa Claus, all celebrating the joyous night. Before midnight mass, there was enough food for every taste bud. Roast Beef. Check. Pierogi. Check. Dill Pickles. Check. Ham. Check. Casseroles of every type and size. Check. The food was endless, with a focus on our traditional Polish fare.

The family was extensive, so as we aged out of the "kid's table," we moved to sitting at the bar talking about college, life, and future dreams, and every one of us never thought this would ever end. Ask any one of them and their memory of Christmas Eve are still as vivid and memorable.

What is your favorite memory from your childhood? Have you shared it with the grandkids? In addition to sharing history, make some history together too. Create memories of your own.

My family has stepped it up a notch and added a family time capsule into our tradition.

A family time capsule allows you to preserve the time that is so quickly slipping through our fingers. Even if you don't think so now, you will miss the days your grandkids were tracking snow through the house. A time capsule can offer a fond memory of those sweet days. Share it together and have them open it in 10 years. Some ideas include:

· Share pictures, old family recipes, and newspaper clips

· Stories from a family trip or activity

· Create a family tree with pictures

As Jim Croce said:

If I had a box, just for wishes

And dreams that had never come true

The box would be empty

Except for the memory of how they were answered by you

Let's change that paradigm and fill that box with stories so they won't be empty.

I hope that when my grandkids think of me, the final line from the song will help them remember me.

 I've looked around enough to know

That you're the one I want to go through time with

Wishing you and your family a Merry Christmas and a year of memories splashed with some history that will go through time with the next generation.