Toss the "stuff" - NOT
the stories!
By Steve Pender, Family Legacy Video, Inc.
Crash! "Now it's garbage!" Remember that scene in the "Odd Couple" movie, the one where
Oscar smashes Felix's plate of pasta against the kitchen wall? (Okay, the film
WAS released in 1967, so you younger folks may need to Google it. Look for the
spaghetti scene.)
Well, the same kind of thing is happening now with the possessions of
our parents and grandparents. What do I mean?
Family keepsakes - and stories -
are at risk.
I treasure my grandparents’ Atwater Kent radio and my
great-grandfather’s meerschaum pipe. But I’m not sure who in my family will
want these physical links to our past once I’ve shuffled off this mortal coil.
And, as pointed out in two recent articles by Richard Eisenberg ("Sorry,
Nobody Wants Your Parents’ Stuff" & "What You Said About 'Nobody
Wants Your Parents' Stuff'") this is a challenge facing many families
today. With Baby Boomers downsizing and younger generations shunning lots of
possessions, the things that used to be family keepsakes are being donated to
Goodwill, placed in consignment shops, sold to antique stores, or just tossed
in the garbage. That's troubling, but there's an even bigger issue here.
Losing connections to our family
history.
What concerns me as a professional personal historian and video
biographer is the continuing loss of something even more valuable than mementos
and keepsakes: family stories. That's because so many of the items being sent
to landfills today have great family stories and associations attached to them.
For instance, I treasure with my grandfather's pocket watch. It'll never cause
an "Antiques Roadshow" appraiser's eyes to light up with excitement,
but every day when I see the old silver timepiece hanging in its display stand,
I'm reminded of a man who I still love deeply, decades after his passing. It's
amazing how a simple item like this serves as a powerful touchstone to feelings
and memories.
But I get it: Some families just have too many items that nobody wants
to display or store. So how can you let go of this stuff without trashing your
family history?
Leave the gun. Take the cannoli.
My apologies to "The Godfather" for this analogy. But before
tossing your parents' keepsakes (the gun), save the stories and memories
associated with them (the cannoli). How
can you do this? Here are a few ideas:
- Video
Inventory. Break out your video camera (or hire a professional) and
gather your family and the possessions you're planning to
"eighty-six." Shoot each item, describe what it is and share the
memories and stories it evokes. With a little editing, the result will be
a cool visual record to pass along to future generations.
- Slide
Show. A variation on the video inventory theme. Shoot stills of each
item and record your remembrances on audio, using a digital MP3 recorder.
Combine the two to create a slide show video.
- Illustrated
Photo Book. Transcribe the audio recording mentioned above. Produce a
book featuring the photos and the transcribed text. The final product can
range from simple (loose leaf pages in a binder) to elaborate (hard cover
book with glossy pages) - it'll all depend on your budget, wants, and
needs.
Make sure your family stories
survive.
You may not treasure the possessions your parents and grandparents
accumulated, but don't forget that the memories associated with these items
speak directly to your family's identity and values. Your grandkids and
great-grandkids may one day feel disappointed that you consigned all this
family stuff to a dumpster. But they will be grateful that you made sure the
stories connected to these items survived.
Visit us online at Family Legacy Video® online at www.familylegacyvideo.com
Phone: 520.743.4090
Email: steve@familylegacyvideo.com
