I heard something on the radio today that made me think. It wasn’t a programme, report or news item but just a phrase.
A man mourning the loss of his wife stated that, ‘She is just a memory.’
The use of the word ‘just’ could be taken to imply a lack of value being ascribed to the subject. For instance, I remember a tradesman complaining about his clients who would say, “Could you just fix that while you are here.” The implication being that the task in question is so insubstantial that little time and/or skill would be involved and therefore no extra cost would be incurred.
Now obviously a bereaved husband would not mean to underestimate the value of his late wife, but he may well not fully appreciate the value of her memory.
Memory is a real and tangible currency, in that it makes us what we are and could be said to constitute most of what we are.
We would perhaps do well to consider more carefully the value we place on the different elements that make up our world, both those within and without us.