It's a sure bet that whatever memories you try to provide for your
kids when you travel or go sightseeing, inevitably something entirely different will
end up being locked in their memories forever. And maybe it's not what you intended at all. For instance we once took a
midwinter trip into the Arctic Circle in Finland, and the outstanding
impression left on both kids who were there was about the sledding.
Serena remembers how when riding down the hill with me, my
anal-retentive let's-not-go-too-fast-braking-boots kicked up snow in
her face. And Nathaniel remembers how a certain tree looked on the
hill. How either of them remember much beyond how so frickin' dark it
was all day long is beyond me, but what about the reindeer sleigh ride?
The candles in the snow? Eating melted cheese in front of a roaring
fireplace? Dripping melted lead into a bucket of water on New Year's
Eve to tell your fortune for the coming year?
And from Ireland, all Serena remembers from our hike through the wild,
rocky pony-studded lands of Connemara was the sound of some man,
coughing. Which was repeated by both children amid peals of raucous laughter for the next five days.
My kids are not alone in this.
I guess maybe they just need to ratchet the experience down to size,
and remembering the Paris department store where stuffed animals "Mole"
and "White Bear" were purchased and there was a huge Winnie-the-Pooh is
likely going to make a bigger impression than seeing some huge metal
tower, you know?
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