He: “We met at nine.”
She: “We met at eight.”
He: “I was on time.
She: “No, you were late.”
He: “Ah, yes! I remember it well.”
---
He: “That dazzling April moon!”
She: “There was none that night.”
“And the month was June.”
He: “That’s right! That’s right!”
She: “It warms my heart to know that
you remember still the way you do.”
He: “Ah yes! I remember it well.”
---
He: “You wore a gown of gold.”
She: “It was all in blue.”
He: “Am I getting old?”
She: “Oh no! Not you!”
“How strong you were,
how young and gay;
A prince of love in every way.”
He: “Ah yes!” I remember it well.
---
n I Remember It Well, by Lerner & Loewe
We, who are fortunate enough to have reached “that certain age” – when memories begin to fade, when we finally have to admit that many of those old hopes and dreams are never going to come true; that this, this present moment, is the only life we are ever going to have – then maybe, if we’re lucky, we will decide that what we have accomplished throughout our life; who we really were and have become, is enough.
This, indeed, is the beginning of the final end. This is all there is and ever will be, and there isn’t going to be anything else to make us smarter, happier, luckier. We have finally spun out our life’s personal dream. No god, no special diet, no self-help book, or new love in our life, will rescue us now. This is the beginning of the end, indeed, for us and for all those we hold dear.
But this moment, this final moment, can become a beautiful new awakening in itself. Even as our memories fade, we can continue to hold onto all them – the good and the bad – and truly accept the value of our past life. The essential meaning of our actions in our life will live on in the others whom we have touched.
And if we are lucky, really lucky in this world of chance and chaos, we may still have someone by our side who can help us remember the good times (and the bad!), to help us feel truly alive until that very, very last moment.
Then we can whisper to each other:
“How strong you were,
how young and gay;
a prince (princess) of love in every way!’
