Besa Gordon: What Watching The Notebook at Seattle’s Paramount Theatre Taught Me About Memory, Love, and Journaling
By Besa Gordon: This past Tuesday, I went to see The Notebook: The Musical at the Paramount Theatre here in Seattle with my Converge fam… and chilleeee. I was not ready.
Like most people, I thought I knew the story. Love story, romance, the whole thing. But what I didn’t expect was how deeply it would hit when the story reached their older years — when dementia enters the picture and love starts looking different.
There’s a moment in the show where Noah says something that honestly broke me:
“On good days I’m her friend… on bad days I’m a stranger.”
And if you’ve ever had someone in your life dealing with dementia, that line will sit heavy in your chest.
Watching it took me right back to my grand-grand in her final days. Sitting beside someone you love and wondering… do they know who I am right now? And sometimes the answer isn’t clear.
This show reminded me how fragile memory really is. And how important it is to hold onto the moments while we have them.
One of the biggest takeaways for me tonight? Write things down.
Journal the memories. The little moments. The random conversations. The laughter. The love. Because one day those stories might be the very thing that brings someone back to themselves.
Or at the very least… they’ll bring you back to the moments you never want to forget.
Bring tissues… Lots of them.
Photos by Jordan Somers
