Friday, 27 November 2015

Important Lessons

You know when you get that sixth sense that something is going to happen, but you ignore it in the hopes that you can just push it away? Well, it happened. On the drive from Sedona to Phoenix, Baby Boy O was playing with my iPhone. On the 10th failed password attempt my phone self destructed and erased everything. Everything. Every photo. Every contact. Every byte of data.

A sensible person would have backed up their iPhone, but the photo upload to Dropbox hadn't caught up yet so there are chunks of precious vacation hiking moments that were captured then lost, except for my feeble memory. I felt that sinking feeling when you know you've lost something and no amount of anger, sadness or regret will every bring it back. Inevitable. That was how it felt. Finite and unrecoverable.

As the shock subsided I came to accept what I cannot change, and to be thankful for the important lesson my dear son gave me – a reminder that nothing is permanent, and being in the moment is what counts, not the photos, souvenirs and keepsakes we accumulate. The photos may have been deleted, but that experience is always a part of me and for that and so many other things I am truly thankful.