“When you remember me, it means you have carried something of who I am with you, that I have left some mark of who I am on who you are. I means that you can summon me back to your mind even though countless years and miles may stand between us. It means that if we meet again, you will know me. It means that even after I die, you can still see my face and hear my voice and speak to me in your heart” (Frederick Buechner).

Does anyone else ever randomly remember people you haven’t thought about or seen in a long while, or is it just me? Sometimes, I’ll see someone who reminds me of a someone else that I knew back in the day, and that will open the floodgates of memories for me.

I’ve had lots of people that I’m blessed to be able to remember. Often, those memories come back in the most bizarre and unexpected ways. Then I can smile and look up at God and say, “Thanks! I knew that was you.”

I do think God brings people to mind as a way of spurring us to gratitude. So many have blessed me and taught me so much. Since I can’t necessarily thank them in person, the next best way is to pay it forward to someone else who can maybe in turn one day remember you and what you did for them.