i knew i was coming out west to go through my father's possessions but was not prepared for the generations upon generations of stuff that he was apparently housing without my knowledge.
above is just a small example - a pile of hankies with at least three distinct monograms on them. my aunt washed them and i pressed them and sorted them into two piles - usable and destroyed. i think i am going to try to find crafty or arty uses for the destroyed ones and use the usable ones to save the planet during runny nose season.
this is the process i have been going through over and over again with a billion tiny little things. i have a strong feeling that i will return to toronto with piles of small objects that i will then have to make sense of and sort into my small apartment life. and the decisions will be much harder than that of the hankies because i can't turn my great uncle's military medals into crafts.
those of you who are friends should brace yourself for calls from me demanding help. for starters, does anyone have a velvet display case?
7 comments:
I felt the same when my grandmother died. Part of me wanted to preserve every bit of her home, save it up and store it away... and part of me just marvelled at what she had stored away and packed up, things I'd never seen before. I saved the things that reminded me the most of her- her baking supplies, dishes, and some odds and ends- everytime I use them I feel like she's still in my life. I'm sure you'll find peace and confort from having your Father's odds & ends in yours, as well.
I gutted/am in the process of gutting my entire home (the result of never having moved in over 20 years), and would love to exchange stories/tips. Also, I have a display case of sorts (a simple, black rectangular box, approx. 8.5x15 inches)that I never ended up using,it just needs the velvety lining, which I know where to get for cheap! Email me!
you guys!
i never feel alone while being a ghost in the machine.
ghostface, consider yourself pre-emailed. i will get in touch when i am home. i actually have some jewellery fixing questions for you and/or other jewellers, too.
call me call me call upon me!
hey lovely, if i am around feel free to call me, and if you need help to store some stuff, i think we can offer a bit of space.
sending you love and strength.
The world is so full of stuff, isn't it? Wonderful stuff. Overwhelming stuff. Too much stuff. We have so much dead people's stuff here in the Harada household. By the time I finish sorting through my grandparents stuff, it might be time for the next generation. I hope that if I have a lot of stuff when I go, that L. and N. will enjoy rifling through it all. Becky, even you have some of my dead people's stuff! I love using my grandparents hankies. Why can't you make crafts with the medals? Would that be blasphemous or are you just are not inspired by them? Well have fun with it as much as you can, dear. Cherish it but don't cling too hard to it. Hmmm someone once told me something like that, can't remember who or the exact quote.
oh, yeah!
i do have some of your dead people's stuff.
as for the medals, they probably have some canadian history worth and it doesn't quite feel right for me to trivialize what my great uncle went through with them. they are pretty loaded objects.
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