Forever and A Day

When my folks headed to the big city from the East Coast, my dad set out ahead. He secured a job and place to live and then sent for me and Momma to join him. We took the train to get to Ontario, landing in Union Station. On a recent trip to Ontario, hubby and I went to Union station. I couldn’t stop taking pictures. I grew up in Ontario, I was an avid subway user and had been downtown Toronto plenty of times. I don’t recall being there at any time after my initial arrival. It still felt familiar, I have memories starting at three, this would of been when I was two. Would that memory be in there? It would have been life changing, monumental in a toddlers life, the place is impressive. I have no recollection of a train ride or arriving, non of it, but this place sparked something.

History and how we connect with it is a passion of mine. Our own histories are plumb full of all kinds of details. When I was a kid I loved the stories my folks shared of thier childhoods, not just the, “we walked to school both ways uphill,” kind. The guts of thier childhood, the woes, the moments when they were the heros and sometimes the zeros. I think kids need to know that life isn’t a cake walk. They need to know, you can come from nothing and do better, that you can have it all and lose it. We tend to protect them so much they don’t know the tales of woe and then they expect white picket fences and rainbows, which lets face it, takes time to establish. Sometimes it is not attainable.

The generations before us are full and rich in memories. When I go to the Seniors home to visit my family, anyone in the common area that wants to talk, I listen. I absolutely love the recollections! A gentleman shared one of his wedding day. He was so animated in his tale, such a nice man and his passion for this vivid moment almost made me cry. I could spend all day there, I know why my daughter loves her job. We need to preserve every ounce of history we can. Our own, others, good, bad, ugly, all of it is important. It has a place in this world and we should be sure the pass it on.