We all have collections of possessions that hold meaning for us. Ordinary items -- a ticket stub, a pressed flower, a small stone -- that we have kept, for reasons that are undefined but clearly existent. These are our Things. Our Things are part of who we are. It's ever so important not to scoff at another's Things - to do so is to ridicule pieces of a person, and that is an unacceptable unkindness.
While helping pack up his house, we encountered many of Cherished Friend's Things. One of his other friends humorously marked certain boxes containing Things with the label, Treasures. Beloved Husband marked other boxes of Things as Memorabilia. Whether Treasures or Memorabilia or some other classification, though, these Things are part and parcel of Cherished Friend's life.
It must have been difficult for Cherished Friend, who is a reserved and modest individual, to have other people -- even ones he knows well -- handling his Things. He kindly offered back-stories when Herself asked about some Things, providing a glimpse into the time before we met him. Herself tried very hard to accord all of the Things the dignity they deserved by packing them carefully and with respect. It was an honor to be allowed to help with the Things.
We thought that perhaps we'd take a stroll through some of our own Things this week, and see what we can find. We'll let you know.
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2 years ago
So true... I feel the same about treasures, unfortunately, I have also had to move my entire life several times -- forcing me to choose which treasures could live on in my mind while going into the trash can. As a result, my treasures have been limited over the past twelve years. As I try to help my parents understand the difference between trash and treasure, though, my patience has been wearing very thin. While I packed up my life to come home and help (and consequently had to part with many things, big and small) they are unwilling to through away used/empty pill bottles, junk mail and tchotchkes with the same fervor. Thank you for this reminder to value their process as well...
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