What is Left Behind........

Our youngest daughter, Stephani, came home a few weeks ago to clean out her room and as we were going through all of her stuff, we came across some more of Kendra's things that we had forgot about. We found some of her purses, earrings, rings and makeup.  We laughed about her crazy purses, as she had several Ed Hardy purses, which I kept a couple and we talked and cried a little about her crazy style.  Think Ed Hardy marrying Betsy Johnson and having J Crew as their child!! Most of her earrings were large and dangly and her rings were big!  I did keep a few of those as well.  I really didn't want to part with any of it, but Steph said just think, now some more people can continue to enjoy her things.  She was right, of course, it will have to be someone else with her crazy style!

But, it did make me stop and think about what we leave behind when we die.  Of course, we all will leave stuff behind and some things will have value, some only sentimental value or meaning.  As we were going through all her things, we laughed about Kendra, shared some funny memories, cried a little, but mostly it made us realize what a big hole she left in our lives.  We miss her laugh, her stories, saying whatever came to her mind, her style, her voice, we just miss her.  Her absence in now a huge presence in our lives, as we are always aware that she is not here with us. 

What I most realized is that when we leave our earthly home to go to our Heavenly home, the only things that we leave that will be important, is the memories.  The important things to leave behind is how we lived, how we loved, how we treated each other and the love that we leave in our loved one's hearts.  Our treasures are not going to be worth anything to anyone else without the memories that go along with them.  So we need to think to ourselves, what are we going to leave behind?  Are we just leaving money, cars, antiques, etc, or are going to leave treasures that are priceless?  Because the priceless treasures are going to be how we touched other people's lives and the love and memories that we leave in their hearts and minds.  Kendra, you are missed more than any words I write can ever express.  Thank you for leaving us with a lifetime of love, happiness, fun and unforgettable memories that we will keep until we see you again.