I'll Love You Forever

Robert Munsch and his wife had two stillborn babies in 1979 and 1980. (You Tube video, You Tube video) Robert wrote the song I'll love you forever, I'll like you for always, As long as I'm living, My baby you'll be. (Robert and his wife later adopted three children.) In 1986, Robert made the song into a book. In 1987, when my first child, Stephen, was born, I received that book as a gift.

Everytime I read Love You Forever, I cry. Over the years the story has come to mean more and more to me. Most people who know the book say it also brings them to tears. I believe it is because this book came out of Robert's grief and longing for his two little ones.

Six years ago, my cousin and his wife in Ottawa were expecting their first child. I purchased Love You Forever for them. I was visiting in Ottawa with my Dad (who was 80 years old at the time). Since my Dad, aunt, and uncle, had never heard the story, we sat together so I could read the book to them. My aunt was laying in a hospital bed in the living room because of a massive stroke. As I read the story, the circle of life and family was so evident. My uncle and his children were tenderly caring for my aunt. Their only son was having a child after many years of marriage. I began to cry and handed the book to my Dad to continue reading. After a few pages, he could not continue and handed the book back to me. Wow! What a special moment!

This spring when I knew that my Dad was very ill, I was leaving school to go to Regina to be with him. I had a image of myself cradling my Dad in my arms just as the grown son in Love You Forever cradles his Mom in his arms. I softly sang the song as I walked home that day. I had the privilege of being with my Dad on May 8th, singing In the Sweet By and By, and holding his hand as he left this world for "the beautiful shore". I'll love you forever, Dad.

Now, what does this have to do with social bookmarking you ask? Well, here's the thing--I love my favourites and my bookmarks. On any classroom computer or home computer I have used, I have files and lists of bookmarks. I have them organized by subject and then by topic under the subject. I love those sites forever. Or I would like to but . . . you know what happens when you no longer have access to that computer--your favourites are gone, finito, history. It makes me so mad. Don't they know how long it took me to collect all those sites in the first place? I would beg our IT people to help me save my favourites somehow. The best they could do was some kind of a Word document which did not work very well.

A week ago, my brother-in-law told me about Delicious. I was so excited because once again I am leaving behind my classroom computer stuffed full of Favourites. Next year I will be at university full-time. So if there is a way for me to keep all those well-loved computer sites, I will be thrilled. I will truly be able to Love Them Forever (or at least until their URL ceases to work).