The years sweep past me as I try to remember time gone by. After many decades and a mind that has worked overtime, I sometimes find myself lost in a memory so vivid that I feel I am a part of it. I hear the music and sounds of the county fair as my shoes kick up dust while I run from one ride to the next. I see my parents waving as I pass by on the carousel horse I called Blaze. I bet they can't believe how quickly time has passed, either. My mom holds my hand, and the softness of hers has always been a comfort to me as a child. I remember sitting with her as she prepared for her final journey home, holding her hand in mine one last time.

My vivid memories also find me deep into the forest, where the sounds and smells always comfort me. I spent many years in those woods playing games like hide and seek and a place where wars were fought with sticks as guns and crudely crafted bows and arrows were our only defense. Then, there was the old lady who lived deep in the forest, making homemade chocolates she sold in town. We knew she had to be a witch who cooked children in a giant cauldron over a fire. In my memory, I find myself with my buddies, peeking in her window. Our hearts are pounding like mine is now reliving another memory of my past.

The closer I get to leaving this life, the more blessed I feel to have had this amazing ability to recall even the smallest of moments and to be a part of them one more time.

Mike 2024