I am aware I have begun to repeat myself on certain topics. There are those that say that is a product of aging. There is evidence to support that, but only, when you are not aware you are doing it. I have begun to repeat things because I'm hoping others will listen, and learn, from rote. Unfortunately that method can also cause annoyance. Well, I can try.
I was thinking about this as I was talking with my mother. She lives in Florida and so we don't get to visit in each others homes. I often describe to her any changes I have made in my decor, and she does the same. I was telling her about two pictures that I had added to my " archives " section. There are both old prints, one of my Dad and a wrecked car taken about 1944 and the other is Great Grandmother Lucy working on an 19th century loom. They have been in a chest full of old photos, clippings and artifacts. Yes, I have reached that age, the age where some of my possessions are now artifacts ! Good Grief. Anyway, I was telling Mom about them and how I explain what these things are to the Grandchildren. This is where I begin to repeat, telling them over and over about each picture and piece of history I have on display. My theory is to create an attachment to those items. I figure if the Grandchildren become familiar with those things and their stories, they are far more likely to survive. The items I mean, not the Grandchildren. That is the reason I have begun to drag these things out and display them more in recent years.
I believe it is much more difficult to discard something when you know the story. If I can attach a memory to an object, I want to keep that object. I realize that some people never seem to create that bond. There are those that will quickly throw out anything they no longer feel a use for. It is something I have always had a hard time doing. My Mom says her parents held onto everything because they lived through the depression. That era taught them the value of everything. That time was long before I, but I feel the same attachment to things as my Grandparents did. I have no explanation for that. It may sit in a dusty corner of the attic but I hesitate to discard things. I am concerned about the fate of my stuff.
In this " throw away " world that we live in now I think it is even more important. We all need to make that connection to the past. For some of us we don't become aware of that until we grow old. Sometimes it is too late and things are lost to time. It is not the monetary value of the things, but their intrinsic value that should be demonstrated. All too often that is being lost today. Perhaps is that, that is behind the current " crafting " being done. The things we craft today were made of necessity not so many years ago. Knitted,crocheted and sewn items. Furniture built or cabinets and such. Many of those are treasured today because of that intrinsic value. We know the story behind them. Buying something at IKEA doesn't hold the same allure. There is no reason that it couldn't however. As long as someone knows the story and gets an attachment to that story.
So, once again I have written about the same topic. I'm repeating. I am repeating because it is important to me and I hope it becomes important to others. That is a basic desire for all people. To share the things that are important to us. We are self centered beings, aren't we ?
I was thinking about this as I was talking with my mother. She lives in Florida and so we don't get to visit in each others homes. I often describe to her any changes I have made in my decor, and she does the same. I was telling her about two pictures that I had added to my " archives " section. There are both old prints, one of my Dad and a wrecked car taken about 1944 and the other is Great Grandmother Lucy working on an 19th century loom. They have been in a chest full of old photos, clippings and artifacts. Yes, I have reached that age, the age where some of my possessions are now artifacts ! Good Grief. Anyway, I was telling Mom about them and how I explain what these things are to the Grandchildren. This is where I begin to repeat, telling them over and over about each picture and piece of history I have on display. My theory is to create an attachment to those items. I figure if the Grandchildren become familiar with those things and their stories, they are far more likely to survive. The items I mean, not the Grandchildren. That is the reason I have begun to drag these things out and display them more in recent years.
I believe it is much more difficult to discard something when you know the story. If I can attach a memory to an object, I want to keep that object. I realize that some people never seem to create that bond. There are those that will quickly throw out anything they no longer feel a use for. It is something I have always had a hard time doing. My Mom says her parents held onto everything because they lived through the depression. That era taught them the value of everything. That time was long before I, but I feel the same attachment to things as my Grandparents did. I have no explanation for that. It may sit in a dusty corner of the attic but I hesitate to discard things. I am concerned about the fate of my stuff.
In this " throw away " world that we live in now I think it is even more important. We all need to make that connection to the past. For some of us we don't become aware of that until we grow old. Sometimes it is too late and things are lost to time. It is not the monetary value of the things, but their intrinsic value that should be demonstrated. All too often that is being lost today. Perhaps is that, that is behind the current " crafting " being done. The things we craft today were made of necessity not so many years ago. Knitted,crocheted and sewn items. Furniture built or cabinets and such. Many of those are treasured today because of that intrinsic value. We know the story behind them. Buying something at IKEA doesn't hold the same allure. There is no reason that it couldn't however. As long as someone knows the story and gets an attachment to that story.
So, once again I have written about the same topic. I'm repeating. I am repeating because it is important to me and I hope it becomes important to others. That is a basic desire for all people. To share the things that are important to us. We are self centered beings, aren't we ?
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