Remember...

Frederick Buechner once wrote about a dream he’d had in which he was staying at a hotel with hundreds of rooms. When he checked in, the desk clerk gave him the key to a delightful room. It made him feel warm, comfortable, and cared for. Although later Buechner couldn’t remember exactly what the room looked like, he shivered with pleasure whenever he thought about it.

In his dream, he stayed in the room for a short time before setting off on a number of adventures. Later, however, his dream brought him back to the same hotel.

This time the clerk gave Buechner the key to a different room. When he opened the door, he immediately sensed the difference: it felt cold and clammy; it was cramped and dark; it made him shudder with fear.

So, in his dream, he went to the front desk and asked the clerk to move him to his first room – the bright and cozy one. But Buechner couldn’t remember where it was.

The clerk smiled and said he knew exactly which room it was. He told Buechner he could have the room any time he wanted it – if he asked for it by name. The name of the room, said the clerk, was Remember. A room called Remember.

That’s when Buechner woke up. He wrote that he has been haunted by that dream ever since. A room called Remember! A room of peace. A room that made him feel loved and at home.

Finding Ourselves Again

What was it all about? Buechner knew. We all have memories, he said – bits and pieces of things that haven happened to us in the past; scraps of stories and songs we’ve learned; photo albums of our younger years. We all remember.

But, said Buechner, we don’t always use our memories. Sometimes we let them go to waste. Sometimes we shut them out of our consciousness. Sometimes we’re too busy to visit with them. And when we stop using our memories, we lose an important part of our lives.

Throughout the Bible we hear God calling us to remember. Remember what life is about. Remember who I am. Remember what you’ve gone through. Remember who you are.

One of the most powerful scenes in scripture pictures Jesus calling us to remember. On the night of his death, Jesus sits quietly with the twelve, raises the cup in blessing, and says, “Whenever you come together, do this and remember me.”

Knowing Ourselves Again for the First Time

T. S. Eliot was wise about the outcomes of good remembering. "We shall not cease from exploration," he said, "and the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time."

I think of a father who watched proudly as his radiant daughter stood waiting to go on her first date. She was excited and nervous, and so was he. What advice could he give her without being overprotective? He put his arm around her shoulder and looked her lovingly in the eye. “Remember who you are,” he said. And that was enough.