Revive25 in 2025 Mini Project #1 Keane Memories

For the first mini project of my Revive25 in 2025, I reflected on my 2024 memories and which moments were most special for me. One of my favourites was the synchronicity with our trip to Amsterdam. (click the link to read my blog post introducing my Revive25 in 2025 Project)

My husband had a business trip at the same time as our daughter was going to be in Amsterdam. I couldn't believe our luck. The timing wasn't ideal for me. I would only be able to stay for four nights and come back earlier than my husband would. I wondered whether it was worth making the trip. I researched what events were happening, what concerts and the tulip festival events. 

Imagine my surprise when I realized one of my favourite bands was playing the night we would arrive. While looking for the venue on a map I noticed the nearby “Olympic Arena”. I had forgotten that Amsterdam was an Olympic City. Another thing on my bucket list is to visit Olympic host cities, especially if they have venues or Olympic rings to see.

The concert was sold out. Every day I checked for peer to peer ticket sales but it seemed impossible to get a ticket this way. I looked at StubHub that I had never used before. I monitored ticket prices for a couple of weeks. The day before we were leaving, I bought two tickets that were lower priced than they had previously been. 

My favourite number is twenty. When we were in the limo on the way to the airport, I noticed the sign on the window saying our car number was 020, my favourite number. I looked at my husband and gave him a knowing smile. At the airport, I noticed our boarding time was 20:20. Our flight had a delay, but I relaxed. Everything's going to be okay.

When the tickets proved to be legitimate as we entered the venue, I had tears in my eyes. I hadn't wanted to get my hopes too high in case it didn't work out. I went straight to the merchandise counter and couldn't believe the t-shirt they had for this tour. They used the design from their first album that includes music instruments and microphones and rather than surrounding the name of the album like they originally did, they created a number 20 (for 20th anniversary of the album release). Perfect for me!

During my Revive55 Project in 2019, I started a concert album showcasing our concert tickets but then I got overwhelmed trying to include them all. What I realized was that they weren't all special. Some of the concerts, I barely remembered and weren't bands I loved. I organized the ticket stubs but also wanted to include my favourite photos, set lists and paper memorabilia for my favourite bands but never completed it. It's sad that we don't get ticket stubs anymore. I have probably lost some of my tickets with technology changes, but I took this opportunity to screen capture the tickets I had on my phone.

For this mini-project, I wanted to complete the Keane pages in my concert album and create highlight videos of my favourite captured moments from the concerts. These tasks ended up being a lot more involved than I anticipated but it was worth the effort. 

Some of my photos were in my photos app on my computer (synced to my phone) but older ones were on an older computer so I revived them by copying them to my photos app. Some of my photos were not digitized. They were cropped and taped in my photo albums. I revived them by taking the negatives to a photo lab where I received digital files and prints to include in the concert album. Doing this reminded me that I have many photos that I want to revive from my negatives before that technology is obsolete.

I love the chronology of my family photo albums, but combining my memories in my concert album from the eleven Keane concerts I have attended is extra special. I can relive those moments by looking in one place rather than 11 different albums.

While working on the pages, I printed blog posts I wrote about my trip to England to see them in concert in 2018 and more details about the Amsterdam concert. 

I created two highlight videos. For one of them, I combined videos of my favourite songs over the years. I often recorded the same songs, so having them back to back from various years was interesting. The second highlight videos were of special moments I captured, whether they were favourite songs I only witnessed once or when they had changed lyrics. For example, when they performed Fly To Me in 2007, instead of singing "When I'm far away from the places we've grown" I captured him singing "When I'm far away from Lake Ontariiiio". I love when bands refer to the places where they're performing.

I understand why I procrastinated from completing the album, realizing how much time and effort it took to complete for just one artist. I read a quote while I was working on it that one reason we procrastinate is we anticipate the hassle. We think about everything we need to do to complete a task and get discouraged from starting. This was the most involved artist so the others won't be as challenging. I am happy that this mini project motivated me to complete these pages. Loving the completed pages will motivate me to continue to complete more pages.

Love Memories

It's one week until Valentine's Day. Although sometimes I let celebratory days come and go without celebrating; I find I'm happiest when I make an ordinary day a little more extraordinary.

Sometimes, we're busy with life and then, at the last minute, we settle for an okay celebration. We can make Valentine's Day or a love anniversary more memorable with a little planning. We can also look at Valentine's Day, which may not be as important to us, as a stepping stone towards a bigger anniversary celebration.

I'd like to share some ideas on how to use our memories for more meaningful celebrations. We can then capture memories we make in the present that we'll enjoy in the future. 

Photos

Many of us feel overwhelmed by our photo collection. A great way to take a small bite out of the overwhelming project of organizing our photos is to focus on a theme when these opportunities to celebrate come up. We can use these special days as nudges to take a small step forward in preserving our memories.

Although I love looking back at memories; our happiness occurs in the present, so we want to focus on memories that enhance our present. We can start by looking back at past celebrations. 

• What have we loved in the past and may want to recreate? 
• What are our favourite activities and foods? 
• What do we care the most about? 

We have tools to help make looking back easier. We can look at 

• our photos from past Valentine's Days
• calendars (do we have restaurant reservations or travel plans?)
• old bills or budgets (what stores or places did we spend in February?)

On an iPhone (and possibly other phones), if you search Valentine and then scroll down, past categories like "Photos", "Text Found in Photos", "Moments" or "Albums"; it shows "Dates". By clicking on "Valentine's Day", we can see photos taken on February 14th over the years.

When looking at these photos, we can put hearts or stars to rate our favourites or copy our favourites into a specialized folder or album.

On Valentine's Day, we can see memories using the TimeHop app that shows all photos and social media posts from that day when we link it to Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.

To see Facebook posts at any time, we can search our profile for keywords like Valentine; or by date (year and month), but this is more time consuming that doing it on Valentine's Day using the TimeHop app. I used to take screen captures of my favourite TimeHop memories so that they would be in my photos to look at any time.

Celebrations

When looking back at past celebrations:

• Which ones make you feel the happiest? 
• Do you prefer celebrations out or at home? 
• Do you prefer to splurge or spend mindfully?

We can recreate experiences or "recycle" them by returning to a restaurant or place we've been; or we can upcycle by adding something more extravagant or meaningful. Perhaps when we were younger, we didn't have the money for the full experience but now we could do it properly. For example, we used to go to fancy restaurants for a cheaper lunch rather than dinner or we would find a local place or cook foods from a place we've travelled to. Perhaps we've rushed a celebration in the past that we can upcycle by making it more meaningful with more thought and planning.

Cards

I love using photos to make greeting cards. Sometimes I print them and give paper copies and other times, I email or text a digital copy. I enjoy the creativity in creating my own cards, but the more important bonus is that I am spending time with my memories to find the photo(s) I want to use. By scrolling or searching through my photos, I am reminded of the stories and memories which helps me to remember. 

I love the BeCasso app that offers artistic filters to edit photos to make them look like a watercolour, a cartoon, pencil drawing or in the style of famous artists. I use the edited photos to make cards. I also use Creative Memories digital paper and decorations to create digital and printed cards using Pages or Canva. 

Food

Food and decorations are also important to me. I enjoy making heart-shaped cookies, cakes and pizzas. I love using love-themed dishes, mugs and glasses on Valentine's Day. It helps that I looove hearts. 

I store my heart-themed and past Valentine's cards (inside a box decorated with hearts) in a storage box that I open in February. When I open it, I'm surprised and excited to see my special items again and it reminds me of how happy I am when I celebrate! I love staying in on Valentine's Day to enjoy my memorabilia, but it's also special to go out.

We were on a family holiday one year and we enjoyed a special meal at the French restaurant of the resort.

We've been lucky to have had a few amazing trips that included Valentine's Day; looking back at these memories brings me happiness and hope that we'll plan future holidays in mid-February.

My husband and I have surprisingly, also been apart quite a few times on Valentine's Day. I would joke that it's Valentine's Day every day; so it's not a problem if we're not together celebrating on the actual day. Even when he's away, I enjoy celebrating with heart-shaped ravioli with lobster, a heart napkin and heart confetti. 

Many specialty grocery stores sell heart-shaped ravioli in February and this is a favourite tradition for me. The local shop in midtown Toronto I used to get it closed a few years ago. Last year, I bought some at Continental Noodles on Valentine's Day (feeling very lucky they still had stock). I searched early this year to compare and found some at Pusateri's, Summerhill Market and Pascale's Gourmet. 

I normally try to find special wine, whether it's a quality one that we love or finding a heart on a label or the word love that makes me purchase it for the label appreciation.

Most of these are not available now, but sometimes it's the search and then the find that is exciting; rather than just buying one I've had before. Sometimes, I see one in the summer or fall that I save for Valentine's Day. I haven't found my Valentine wine for this year yet. I'm looking forward to the search and if I don't find one, we have some special wines with meaningful stories we've been saving for a special occasion.

Music & Entertainment

Music is a big part of my life. On Valentine's Day, I enjoy listening to a smart playlist I created in iTunes/Apple Music of songs that contain the word love or heart (it's a fast and easy although imperfect playlist that also includes breakup or irrelevant songs). 

• Send my love (to your new lover) by Adele
• Horseshoe in my glove by Embrace
• Every Day I Love You Less and Less by Kaiser Chiefs
• Pride (In the Name of Love) by U2

My playlist is almost 24 hours long so I can't listen to it all, but I put it on shuffle and see what comes up. I also have a favourite love songs playlist that is more curated than a smart playlist. It takes more time to create it, but it's a work in progress. I add to it when I hear a song I feel belongs in it.

Sometimes we enjoy watching a Valentine-themed movie like Valentine's Day, An Affair To Remember, Sleepless in Seattle or shows like A Charlie Brown Valentine. Back in the day, our favourite shows would have holiday themes. Now that seasons are on streaming services, my daughter would find these episodes to watch on Thanksgiving or Christmas. This Valentine's Day, I'll watch one of these episodes:

• Friends “The One With the Candy Hearts” (Season 1, Episode 14)
• Grey's Anatomy "All You Need Is Love" (2012)
• Downton Abbey (Season 4, Episode 1)

Check out this Wikipedia page that lists all kinds of Valentine's Day television specials to find your favourite family, drama, horror, reality or sitcom episode.

Most importantly, on Valentine's Day, I love looking back at our photos and videos; reading old Valentine's cards; baking and cooking special treats and enjoying making new memories while enjoying the older ones.

Christmas Memories

Part 6 of my 60T🖤60 Project began on November 19th and ended on December 23rd. (For more information about my 60T🖤60 project, go to my other blog My Life Is Like A Song) Seeing that end date, and knowing that sometimes, I sprint to a deadline to complete a mini-project; making Part 6 have a Christmas theme seemed the smartest thing to do. I didn't want to be focusing on a different theme the week before Christmas.

When our kids were young, I often felt rushed when Christmas came around. I procrastinate naturally, but with a family birthday in mid December, I would wait to get a tree or decorate until after we had celebrated the birthday. I had read or heard from parenting experts to ensure that a child gets to celebrate their birthday separately from the Christmas celebrations, and I accepted this advice by not letting our house become too Christmassy until after the birthday. 

I have to admit that in mid-November this year, I was not feeling cheerful or excited about Christmas coming. I was already feeling stressed, overwhelmed and not in a celebratory mood. 

Focusing my project on Christmas would force me to look at the positives and help to make Christmas more festive. Coincidentally, on the day that my project started, I attended a "Spill The Tea" event by Tea With Tracie where Brenda Jasmin was speaking about infusing more joy and less stress during the holidays. One of the activities was for us to determine what made us happy; our "Ho Ho Ho list" and what drained us or things we wanted to let go of; our "Ho Ho Heck No" list. It was perfect timing to start Part 6 of my 60T🖤60 Project. I wanted to focus on what I loved the most and let go of what I didn't.

Photos

My first activity was to gather past Christmas memories and create a Christmas-themed photobook. Looking back at happy times lifted my mood. I didn't complete it in time to order for Blurb's Black Friday sale so I decided to show it digitally to my family at Christmas before completing it, in case they had extra photos or memories they wanted to share to improve it. (That was the plan but it dien't work out the way I hoped).

Looking back at all our Christmas cards gave me the idea to display them on our "living frame". A few years ago, my husband took an old frame, removed the broken glass, and added wire with clips to hold photos. We rotate photos depending on seasons or celebrations. Normally at Christmas, we add photos taken at Christmas time, but I liked focusing on our Christmas cards or photos we sent with Christmas cards when I didn't order actual photo cards.

Last year I ordered snowball garlands. I thought the balls would be bigger than they ended up being when I received them. I was happy that one of them fit perfectly around our living frame to make it more festive.

Christmas Card

I wasn't sure whether to send Christmas cards this year, especially as more and more people are choosing to end the tradition. We didn't have a recent family photo; and we lost our dog this year. 

Working on my Christmas photobook and seeing our past Christmas cards, gave me the idea to have Christmas memories as a theme for the card. We had festive family photos over the years that we had never shared because they were taken at Christmas or New Year's; when our Christmas cards would have already been sent. I included a photo with our dog; a photo with the kids' partners. I included the new card in the living frame (top middle).  I wanted to let people know the news about our dog, so added the sad news in a fun rhyme.

Getting together and telling stories
Looking back at Christmas memories
Excited as we anticipate making more
Before we reach 2024

(couple of more private lines)
This year was sad saying goodbye to our pup
The house is sadly quieter but needs less cleanup

Festive decorating is coming along
We’ll enjoy our favourite Christmas movie or song
A dusting of snow sets the mood
Menus will mix classics with new found food

May your Christmas be spent with friends and family
On New Year’s Eve, pop the Bublé or bubbly
While making a wish upon a star
“Joy for our loved ones near and far”

Music

I love Christmas music and especially love new Christmas songs over traditional ones. I used to have CDs of our favourite Christmas songs, but with technology changes, when we switched from iTunes to Apple Music, I lost those playlists. This project encouraged me to search and add old and new Christmas songs in a playlist (almost 500 songs!) in order to create a top 20 favourite songs playlist.

I really enjoyed listening to my favourite songs during the holiday season. My in-laws arrived at Christmas with a CD we made for them in the late 1990's or early 2000's.

I found it interesting how different this list was to my current one.

Every year, I love playing Christmas songs on the piano. This year was extra fun trying to learn songs on the ukulele. I initially thought I'd learn the Hawaiian Song Mele Kalikimaka; but it ended up being too difficult for me, so I found a couple of easier ones to learn.

Last year I tried to compose a Christmas melody. I wondered what made a melody sound Christmassy if it didn't have Christmas lyrics. I found some chord progressions that are popular in Christmas songs but didn't compose anything I liked. I enjoyed trying again this year, but still no success. One of these years, I'll compose a Christmas melody I will love. I'm adding that to my wishlist like I did in 1996 when I added "to write a song I like" on my list of dreams.

Movies

Last year, our daughter wrote a list of movies and shows to watch and put it on the fridge. I stored it with the Christmas decorations to continue the tradition. With a little research, I created a new list that we kept on the fridge this eyar. This helped in the decision-making process. We didn't need to keep searching streaming apps to figure out what to watch since I already did that to compile the list. When we watched one, we'd colour the bullet. I stored the list with the decorations again this year to be reminded to continue to complete watching it; or to re-print an updated list.

Gifts

Shopping for me is often stressful because I don't like buying something for the sake of buying something, but this year, I found meaningful gifts and had lots of help from my daughter that made me happy with the gifts I was giving.

Sometimes I also feel that if we are feeling happier, we are open to seeing clues for what we are looking for. In contrast, if we are feeling negative, clues pass us by without us noticing. I like to think that my improved mentality helped for me to find great ideas for gifts.

For many years, our kids decorated a gingerbread house during the holidays. 

I serendipitously found a gingerbread house that included the CN Tower, Rogers Centre, and downtown Toronto. I thought it would be a fun Christmas time activity for us to build it.

Food

While making the photobook, seeing photos of treats and foods we love at Christmas time helped me plan better and get the ingredients I needed early. I made favourites like tourtière (French Canadian meatpie) and sweetheart cookies (jam thumbprint cookies sometimes with marshmallows). 

Instead of my traditional shortbread recipe, I tried a new sugar cookie recipe cut in hearts and snowflakes  that turned out great (forgot to take a photo). A newer tradition is to make scones with cream. This year, our daughter found a bakery that sold homemade scones and traditional British clotted cream with homemade butter.

My French-Canadian heritage, mixed with my husband's British heritage, adds up to delicious treats.

When I first spent Christmas with my husband's family, they introduced me to a British tradition called Christmas crackers. Two people hold a cracker until it pops to reveal a paper crown/hat, a toy and a joke. When I popped mine, I felt a little disappointed at first by the yellow crown (instead of my favorite purple), but I was thrilled to find a heart keychain, just like the one I got last year. What a coincidence! (I love hearts in case you haven't been a regular reader of my blog)

Looking back at photos reminded me how much I love seeing Christmas lights around the city. I had hoped to visit the Eaton Centre, Nathan Phillips Square, the Distillery District or Inglewood "Kringlewood" Drive lined with giant inflatable Santas; like we had in the past or the new Illumi light festival in Mississauga, but I ended up not in the mood with the rainy weather. 

Even if I focused on Christmas Memories to help make Christmas more festive and meaningful, plans don't always go as we hope. With COVID visiting our family, and us not being all together, the gingerbread pieces and royal icing ended up in the freezer. My Christmas-themed photobook was saved for next year.

It's a good reminder that life is filled with ups and downs. Everything isn't always perfect, but we can make the best of what is presented to us.

This reminds me of a great quote: "Things turn out best for those who make the best of the way things turn out." 

AGO Exhibition: I Am Here

It’s a song

Nothing’s wrong

Everything is clear

I am here.

(I Am Here by David Wall)*

I'm happy I learned that the exhibition I Am Here: Home Movies and Everyday Masterpieces was at the AGO, less than a week before it was leaving. I missed the original (and subsequent) announcements.

This exhibition speaks so much to my love of memories and documenting our lives. This is how the AGO presented the exhibition:

The exhibition was divided by theme. I took a photo of each title sign and put them in this collage.
The themes included Our House, We Are Family, Food Glorious Food, Fight The Power, Dance To The Music, My Favourite Things, On The Street Where You Live, Life Is A Highway, Everyday People, and Panorama.

In the middle of the Home and Family areas, was a collection of lost albums that really had me thinking about how photo albums have changed over the years. For almost a century, people have told their life stories with photo albums. How will the next generation tell their life stories?

The exhibition included many home movies including "baby's breakfast" which may be the first home movie ever recorded by Louis Lumière in 1895. This reminded me of seeing another Louis Lumière film of workers leaving a factory at a previous exhibition. 

I Am Here also showed how home movies have changed since its inception with a special focus on protests captured on our smart phones in the past decade. This part of the exhibition was very insightful and thought-provoking.

I was inspired by the "Mixtape Diaries" by Glynnis Grant-Henderson. I create yearly playlists of the songs I love each year. I have often blogged about them, but I loved the journals that Glynnis created. My husband has made over 200 mixtapes (back in the cassette days). It would be amazing to have some thoughts to transport us back to what he was thinking when he made them.

Another exhibit that had me thinking was one of Andy Warhol's 600 memory boxes. It contained 595 objects that the gallery described as falling into the category of the everyday like Christmas cards, newspaper clippings, doodles and tax forms. As fascinating as it was to see a glimpse of an art icon; it's a reminder to me that as much as I love memories and memorabilia; less is more meaningful and I prefer curating my memories.

I love connected moments, so I especially appreciated this graphic showing the timeline from cave paintings to Tik Tok.

The exhibition ended with a collection of vignettes representing themes of "home-movieness". The 26 themes were titled alphabetically and included a song, I Am Here by David Wall that really resonated with me. You can see a few examples of the themes and here I Am Here in this video posted by the AGO. You can also read more about the Panorama compilation by clicking here.

I saw this exhibition at the perfect time, as I am focusing on Revive From Archive and organizing memories like art galleries curate exhibitions.

*Lyrics as I hear them. Apologies if there's a mistake

Lullabies & Legacies

I received an email in the spring from Massey Hall & Roy Thomson Hall that caught my attention. The subject line was "Help share a lifetime of memories. Donate to the Lullaby Project today".

The word memories always catches my attention. I had missed a few earlier emails that described it: "The Lullaby Project pairs expectant parents with artists to write, record, and perform a personal lullaby – a bond and connection to last a lifetime."

I couldn't resist donating to the campaign since music is a large part of my life and my memories. I loved the idea of composing a lullaby and wish I had when I was expecting. Interestingly, the first songs I composed were 11 months prior to the birth of my fist child, but they weren't melodies that I would sing or hum to my kids. They would have heard me play them on the piano though.

I remember singing Yellow by Coldplay to my daughter. 

🎵Look at the stars; look how they shine for you

And everything you do Yeah, they were all yellow

I came along I wrote a song for you

And all the things you do And it was called Yellow🎵

It's memorable because I had a friend over who liked that I wasn't singing typical "baby" songs but songs I loved. And my daughter liked it so why sing songs I don't like to her?  It's funny looking back that my daughter's favourite colour was yellow for a while and it still is one of her favourites. Coincidence?

I love lyrics and have often used lyrics to introduce my blog posts. Since I donated to the Lullaby Project, I received Supporter Newsletters. A few weeks ago, the newsletter highlighted the Lyrics & Legacies Project. This project pairs songwriters with seniors in a long term care home for them to write their life story in a song. I had goosebumps and happy tears reading about this project and listening to the songs they composed. You can hear them by clicking here. The lullabies can be heard here.

I donated to this project without hesitation. During the summer, I was participating in a Passion & Purpose Summer Series hosted by Brenda Jasmin where we were reading the book Passion To Purpose by Amy McLaren. I donated to Lyrics & Legacies after the 4th week of our 7 week series. The following week on our zoom call with the theme "Make an Impact", I told the group about this project and how it excited me. With two weeks to go before our last zoom call that would have the theme of Legacy & Vision, I decided to write a song to share with the group. 

I will write more about Passion To Purpose in another post but for now, I will just say that finding what moves us makes our lives more meaningful. Happy tears are a sign that I have found something that is meaningful to me. In her book, Amy believes that channeling our gifts and our giving (whether donating time or money) with causes we're passionate about will have a bigger impact.

It has me wondering about how I make donations. I like that I have automatic monthly donations set up so that my giving is more proactive, but I'm not passionate about many of the causes that I donate to. I believe they are important issues but they're not what I'm passionate about.

What if rather than having given my "regular" amount to the Lullabies & Legacies projects, I had given a more meaningful contribution?  Sometimes, we can have a bigger impact and involvement when we give more. Reading Passion To Purpose has me re-evaluating my donations.

Music and memories move me in so many ways and finding projects to support that include both made my heart sing.

Thanksgiving Themed Playlist

In my last post, I wrote:

"A Thanksgiving playlist is something fun to do, whether they are songs that are about giving thanks or just songs that you're thankful for. Creating and listening to a playlist you love can add enjoyment to your weekend."

I started a playlist of songs that relate to giving thanks, getting together, autumn and some songs that kind of  stretch the theme - like Washing Dishes. I started with songs I already had, then searched for suggestions on Google and Apple Music. When I was done (the first time), I loved that there were 55 songs in the playlist for my Revive55 Thanksgiving Playlist.

I then removed ones that I didn't like when I listened to them or read the lyrics.  As I removed some, I added some to keep the number to 55. 

Here are some of my favourite lyrics about giving thanks or being grateful. I'm actually copying these from my 2009 blog post on my original blog My Life Is Like A Song.

I want to thank you

for giving me the best day of my life
Oh just to be with you
is having the best day of my life
(Thank You by Dido)

Thank you India
Thank you providence
Thank you disillusionment
Thank you nothingness
Thank you clarity
Thank you thank you silence
(Thank U by Alanis Morrissette)

Some call it faith, some call it love.
Some call it guidance from above.
You are the reason we found ours,
So thank you stars
(Thank you, Stars by Katie Melua)

Who can live without it, I ask in all honesty
What would life be?
Without a song or a dance what are we?
So I say thank you for the music
For giving it to me
(Thank You for the Music by Abba)

Didn't expect any of this
But it's really nice,
Didn't want you to cause a fuss
But it feels alright.
So thank you very much,
It's really nice to know
That you enjoyed the show
(Thank You Very Much by Kaiser Chiefs)

And I thank you for choosing me
To come through unto life to be
A beautiful reflection of his grace
See I know that a gift so great
Is only one God could create
And I'm reminded every time I see your face
(To Zion by Lauryn Hill)

Got my dreams, got my life, got my love
Got my friends got the sunshine above
(Happy by Natasha Bedingfield)

I'm lucky I'm in love with my best friend
Lucky to have been where I have been
Lucky to be coming home again
(Lucky by Jason Mraz)

And I thank you for bringing me here
For showing me home
For singing these tears
Finally I've found that I belong here
(Home by Depeche Mode)

Well tonight
Thank God it's them instead of you
(Do They Know It's Christmas by Band-Aid)

Who will rise?
It would be so nice to hear you say
"Thank you for the good times"
Before the good times fly away
(Thank you for the Good Times by Oasis)

Oh its such a perfect day,
I'm glad I spent it with you.
Oh such a perfect day,
You just keep me hanging on,
You just keep me hanging on.
You're going to reap just what you sow,
(Perfect Day by Lou Reed)

Generosity is the key
Yeah
Thank you very much
(15 Minutes Away by K'naan)

Nothing is perfect man
That's what the world is
All I know is I'm enjoying today
You know cause it isn't everyday
That you get to give
(Take A Minute by K'naan)

Outside the sun is shining,
seems like heaven ain’t far away
It’s good to have you with us
Even if it’s just for the day
(Exitlude by The Killers)

Ah la la la la la life is wonderful
Ah la la la la la la life is meaningful
Ah la la la la la life is full of
Ah la la la la la life is so full of love
(Life is Wonderful by Jason Mraz)

I'm thankful for the blessings

and the lessons I learned

with you by my side

(Thankful by Kelly Clarkson)


And finishing with a song of the beauty in the world...

I see trees of green........ red roses too
I see 'em bloom..... for me and for you
And I think to myself.... what a wonderful world.

I see skies of blue..... clouds of white
Bright blessed days....dark sacred nights
And I think to myself .....what a wonderful world.

The colors of a rainbow.....so pretty...in the sky
Are also on the faces.....of people going by
I see friends shaking hands.....saying...how do you do
They're really saying......I love you.

I hear babies cry...... I watch them grow
They'll learn much more.....than I'll never know
And I think to myself .....what a wonderful world
(What a Wonderful World by Louis Armstrong)

Here are some of the songs on my playlist:

The Thanksgiving Song by Adam Sandler
Crowded Table by The Highwomen
Washing Dishes by Jack Johnson
Thank You For the Music by Abba
What a Wonderful World by Louis Armstrong
Perfect Day by Lou Reed
Grateful by Jewel
Look For The Good by Jason Mraz
Thank You by Dido
Happy by Natasha Bedingfield
Thank U by Alanis Morrissette
Life is Wonderful by Jason Mraz
Thank for the Music by Amanda Seyfried (Mamma Mia!)
Beautiful Day by U2
Better Together by Jack Johnson
Autumnsong by Manic Street Preachers
Hallelujah by Leonard Cohen
A Thousand Suns by Hey Rosetta!
Home by Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros
Harvest Moon by Neil Young
Give Thanks and Praise by Bob Marley & The Wailers
Autumn in New York by Billie Holiday

etc.

For anyone interested, click here my full Thanksgiving playlist on Apple Music.

It's the end of a decade

Seems to me now

That the dreams we had before

Are all dead, nothing more

Than confetti on the floor

It's the end of a decade

In another ten years time

Who can say what we'll find

What lies waiting down the line

In the end of eighty-nine

(Happy New Year

by Abba)

As much as I love the holidays, I love the last few days before the end of the year. I love to reflect on the year that is ending and look forward to the year to come.

This year is extra special because it's also the end of a decade which reminds me of my favourite New Year's song I listen to every year. If you could travel back in time to 2009, what would "2009-you" be amazed to know happened in the 2010's?

Imagine it's the end of of 2029, what do you hope your life will be like then? If you like lists or resolutions, write down your hopes and dreams and store them somewhere special.

I wrote my dreams in this journal for the first time in January 1996.

Life is the music
that dances through our days,
our nights and our years.

It's interesting to see what I dreamed of then, to see the ones that happened and also how I feel about those that didn't. Am I disappointed? Do I still hope they happen? Using a journal also allows for future edits or additions.

Since 2005, I have made a playlist of my favourite songs every year. At the end of 2009, I made a list of my favourite songs of the decade (2000's). I am continuing that tradition by creating a playlist of my favourite songs of 2019 and the 2010's. If books or movies are more your thing, would you enjoy making a yearly list of your favourites?

I spent some time this week looking back at my photos from 2019. If you had asked me to tell you what I did all year, I wouldn't have thought of some amazing moments. Looking back at the photos reminded me of experiences I loved and want to remember.

What were your favourite moments of 2019? What experiences do you want to remember?

Some experiences are unforgettable. I won't forget breaking my arm, going on vacation, attending the Raptors NBA Championship parade or launching my Revive55 Project. What are some smaller moments that are worth remembering but could be forgotten?

I love the colours of the Caribbean Sea.

This is one of my favourite photos of the year:

Can you guess where it is? Some of you can but if I had seen this photo years ago, I wouldn't have guessed.

This is not a perfect photo, but it's a moment when I am reminded that I can see beautiful Lake Ontario colours a short drive from home. I didn't have much time to admire it on this fall day. I was with friends and we were going for a quick dinner by the beach before a movie. I want to remember this moment as a reminder to go next summer and truly enjoy Lake Ontario and the beach we have. I'm adding that to my New Years Resolutions.

Celebrate the past

Create a time capsule or best of lists of what 2019 or the 2010's were like for you.

Ideas include:

1. Favourite Photos and Videos
2. Stories or things that happened to you
3. Mementos or Purchases
4. Accomplishments or Celebrations
5. People you spent time with, you met or your favourite celebrities
6. Outings or Activities
7. Places like a country, city or place in your neighbourhood or in your house

If this seems overwhelming, you can just spend a bit some time remembering your favourite moments.

Did you start a Memories timeline? Take a few moments to add 2019 or 2010's events on it.

By looking at what you love from your past, you get clues of what you will love in the future.

Dream for your future

What kind of photos and videos do you love? What kind of outings and activities do you most enjoy?

How can you plan to create more moments that you'll love just as much in 2020?

By looking back at 2009, I was reminded that I was about to go to the Olympics in Vancouver for the Opening Ceremony and Men's Moguls - our first Olympic gold win on home soil. That trip is one of my highlights of the decade. Before we had children, we used to go on a yearly ski trip to Whistler. I have wanted to go back especially since they co-hosted the 2010 Olympics. As an Olympic host city, it would be even more special.

Since starting this post and doing my own reflection, I have booked a trip to return to Vancouver on the 10th anniversary of the Opening Ceremony and then to go to Whistler where I will see the Olympic rings and ski the Olympic downhill run.

If I am super lucky, one of the Olympic cauldrons will be lit while I'm there.

Sometimes, we need to reflect and to plan in order for our hopes and dreams to happen.

Playlist of my Life

"What seems to happen is that

a piece of familiar music serves as a 

soundtrack for a mental movie 

that starts playing in our head. 

It calls back memories 

of a particular person or place, 

and you might all of a sudden 

see that person's face in your mind's eye,"

Petr Janata

Source: University of California-Davis

Music has always been a part of my life. I played the piano and sang throughout my childhood and listened to music on records, albums, 8-track cassettes, audio cassettes, CDs, and digitally on iPods, iTunes, iPhones and computers.

It's amazing to reflect at how much technology has changed over the years.

During my childhood-themed mini project, I took my 45's out of storage and was enjoying seeing my record box on display, however, I decided to go one step further.

Over 10 years ago, I had made a CD with my favourite childhood songs. I didn't find the CD but found the list of songs on it.

I made an Apple Music playlist with these songs and others that I found while looking through my records. There were a few songs that were not on iTunes however. I decided to look at record players to see how much they were. They averaged $75 on Amazon. I saw reviews on Amazon that were not that complimentary. I have never returned something to Amazon so in case I would want to return it, I checked Best Buy. The same record player offered in various colours at regular price was on sale in grey for $27. I figured that it was meant to be and ordered it.

I am not recommending this record player. The Amazon reviews are accurate and the table wobbles but I am keeping it anyway. I initially played my new U2 albums I received from being a U2 subscriber. I figured that once I started playing my old records that would wreck the needle, I wouldn't play new records. I quickly noticed though that I didn't really want to play my new records on it. It's good enough for what I wanted it though.

I have continued this music theme and made a playlist of my favourite songs from High School and University Days.

Listening to these songs has revived so many memories for me of the places and people in my life. It has also reminded me of songs I had forgotten.

Music is profoundly connected to our memories.

Dr. Petr Janata tested the hypothesis that music and personal memories are linked in the same region of the brain: the medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC). His study entitled Neural Architecture of Music-Evoked Autobiographical Memories was published in Cerebral Cortex in November 2009. His results found that songs linked to strong memories had greater activity in the MPFC. This supported the idea of a "hub" linking music, emotions, and memories.

"What seems to happen is that a piece of familiar music serves as a soundtrack for a mental movie that starts playing in our head. It calls back memories of a particular person or place, and you might all of a sudden see that person's face in your mind's eye. Now we can see the association between those two things – the music and the memories."

It's therefore not surprising that listening to these songs, I can picture myself:

• in my childhood home
• in my bedroom, basement, living
• at a bonfire in the field behind our house
• on the dock at Ouellette Bay (Remi Lake)
• listening to the radio
• going to hilltop rendez-vous in Timmins where cars would line-up to request and dedicate a song live on radio
• at school for a gymnastics routine
• at friends' houses
• at the movie theatre
• at the piano
• singing/playing in front of the school
• in the gym
• at tournaments and meets
• warming up in the parking lot at OFSAA
• at dances
• at McDonald's (where I worked)
• in my university residence room
• at the Jack Pine and the Commercial (hometown bars)
• at Fed Hall and Bombshelter (university bars)
• walking to campus
• at CKMS where I DJ'd
• at concerts
• and more...

Although I may not like some of these songs anymore, it has been wonderful to think back about these wonderful memories that involved music in my life. It is also a great reminder to continue to enjoy music, especially in the context of making new memories that I will want to remember in the future.