We each carry distinct melodies of people, events, words, journeys and lessons we've learned, categorized amid the complex and winding caverns of our minds.
As age overtakes us, the melodies become increasingly precious. as my late Uncle Kenneth was fond of saying when he reached 90 and enjoyed recalling the memorable pitch, rhythms and tonal colors of his late wife from a rocker on the porch of a nursing home.
Evidence of my wife Jeanetta's melodies hangs on the wall of our laundry room with a signed photograph of her late friend, champion stock-car racer Larry Phillips alongside his car, as well as a lengthy friendship with Randy Rudd, a cherished member of the Sons of the Pioneers who died recently following a long battle with cancer.