I had to make some hard decisions when we moved last fall. I had several bins of things from my parents’ house, including mementos from their lives and from my grandparents’ lives and gifts that they gave me over the years.
Some of the hardest to get rid of were items that had belonged to my maternal grandmother. Readers of this blog know that I felt very close to my Nanny Winnie from a very young age.
We played together with Sewing Doll. I threw out Sewing Doll and her box of scraps. If I ever sew with my granddaughters, I will do so with a new doll and I will have to scrounge my own ribbons and bits of fabric. (But I did keep Nanny Winnie’s thimble.)
My parents had saved Nanny Winnie’s last prayer book. I remembered her carrying it to Mass until she didn’t really know she was in church anymore. It was falling apart, so I threw it out.
What did I keep?
A wastebasket and tissue box that were one of the last presents Nanny Winnie gave me. My mother might have bought them, but they were labeled as coming from Nanny Winnie, and I think of her every time I use them.
A cotton throw with pictures of Oregon lighthouses on it—another present from Nanny Winnie. When I see it, I think of visiting Oregon and California lighthouses with her and with my grandfather.
A little picture frame that Nanny Winnie had for years. It held pictures of her and my grandfather, and my mother kept it after Nanny Winnie died. The pictures are gone, but I kept the frame.
It might seem strange that I kept these mundane items, but I kept them because they make me think of Nanny Winnie, and other departed members of my family, every day. And isn’t that the purpose of mementos?
What mementos do you cherish?
Sweet memories. What do i cherish the most from my mom, dad, and growing up in California? I loved running across the CA grasslands, sliding down the hills on cardboard boxes, swimming in neighbors’ pools, running with my dog, and would you believe catching tarantulas in jars!
Not tarantulas! My arachnophobia has been triggered. But I’m glad you have fond memories of growing up in California.
Theresa
I have my mother’s tumbling teddybear whom she bought with her first scholarship in Uni, her song book (I remember her singing me), some books she loved, including from her childhood, which are now about 85 years old, her Uni graduation album, as many photos as were readable, my grandmother’s embroidery, my great grandmother’s headdress (not a shawl, a sort of fine linen scarf she had woven for herself, among her dowry, part of the folk costume she was wearing then.) That veil/scarf/ headdress (trying to find the most appropriate word to describe it) is about 120+ years old…
Marina,
What wonderful mementos you have from several generations! I hope you smile and reminisce whenever you see them.
Theresa