Recently I was in Timaru again visiting my parents and picking up my children after some days with the grandparents. While I come relatively frequently to Timaru, I get to some areas very infrequently. So as I was driving or walking through the city I did notice the changes: the little shop closed, that one taken over by another chain, a house replaced by a modern one, a tree towering over the street, which in years past I had never noticed. I mentioned a few of the things I noticed to my parents. But they could only remember some of them. Other changes now seemed so normal to them that they no longer remembered how it was in the past. It seemed that I was alone with these memories.

That’s how it is with memories: some we share with many others, some we share with just a few, others we carry alone. Of course, there will be others who remember those buildings as I remember them, but I probably share few other memories with those strangers. Memories are strange: not only do they represent something that now no longer is as it was, they are also deeply personal and depend on our capacity to remember. And yet, they also represent how things came to be and shape the present and future still. Even animals remember basic events in some shape or form and adjust their behaviour accordingly.

I wonder what memories will remain from the year that is drawing to its close, the year 2025. For some there will be quite personal memories, memories of hardship and anxiety, memories of love and joy, memories of loss and memories of valuable experiences. Some of those are sharp, others more vague. We may have photos of some of the key moments, others are more remembered by our feelings.

Some of the memories we share with many others: events that were broadcast across the world, news that we all took note. I wonder how we as a parish remember this year. Rather than specific events was it more the continual practice of coming to church and worshipping together that has left a mark on us?

Someday not that long into the future those memories will be no longer. Some may still be noted in a history book or database, or however else we will tell history in the future. But I am sure that the God who holds our time in his hands, also holds our memories. When we can no longer remember, our prayers are not lost.