Memories Are Free: Golden Curry Edition
Wow(!!!) is the only word that can even remotely describe how amazing the end of the men's gold medal game was yesterday. With about three minutes remaining, France's run narrowed the gap to a three-point game. The U.S. was playing well, but France, fueled by their raucous home crowd, kept clawing back. Wemby, now just 20 years old, proved he's likely the future face of the NBA. He made play after play after play. Then, Steph Curry steps to the plate. I encourage you to check it out for yourself by clicking this link!
Ok, for the 90% of you who didn't click the above link, I'll explain what happened. Curry drills his 5th three-pointer of the game with 2:45 remaining, stunting France's run. Then, his 6th at the 1:51 mark. Then his 7th, a shot-clock buzzer-beater at the 1:18 mark. Then, in what will inevitably become an iconic moment in the history of international basketball (if not basketball, period), he drills his 8th on two defenders, in heat-check fashion, with 34 seconds remaining to seal the Olympic gold medal. That last one, man! Finn was freaking out, and I instantly had tears in my eyes. The raw emotion and euphoria were surreal. I will never, ever, ever forget that moment.
I've been replaying that sequence of events in my head for more than 12 hours—the sequence of events that played out on my TV and the sequence of events that played out in my living room. I'm so grateful for that time Finn and I spent together, and I hope that memory is as vivid for him as it surely will be for me.
Memories are free! In a culture that tells us we need to spend hundreds, thousands, or tens of thousands of dollars to create memories, I'm here to remind you today that memories are free. Sure, you can spend thousands of dollars to create a memory. That's perfectly fine, if you have the resources. But money isn't a prerequisite for memories. What Finn and I experienced together cost us nothing other than our presence and our togetherness. The rest took care of itself.
It's so easy to get lost in the idea that we must create these elaborate, exotic, expensive, and Instagram-worth experiences. Instead, the simplest moments can often be the most profound. I've experienced so many once-in-a-lifetime experiences that I never imagined I'd have access to in my life. Yet, it's usually those simple and free memories that pop back into my mind and my heart. Curry's golden moment, shared on my living room couch with Finn, will likely be one of them, and I will cherish it forever.
Go make some memories, and please don't let lack of money get in the way of a life-giving, until-you-die memory.
____
Did someone forward you this post? We're glad you're here! If you'd like to subscribe to The Daily Meaning to receive these posts directly in your inbox (for free!), just CLICK THIS LINK. It only takes 10 seconds.