I am sitting in my daughter’s “special play place”, also known as the fenced off corner of our living room. She is at the stage where she wants to be within three feet of a human or animal, though climbing on you is preferred.
As I began to consider what to share with you in this week’s article, I thought back to one year ago when time seemed so unlimited and I had few reasons to sit in a corner next to Elmo. I realized that my perspective on memory keeping had definitely evolved, quite literally now that I frequently test out the knee-level view of the world.
Here are a few of the lessons I’ve learned thus far. These are certainly not the only new-found morsels of wisdom, nor will they be the last.
1. Everything is edible. Like you, I am guilty of a little glass-is-half-empty thinking in my memory keeping. I might think I could never use that product or be that good or try that approach or ever catch up. I discovered that assuming the best until you figure out otherwise offers a chance to stretch your creativity and learn along the way.
2. Every day is a reason to celebrate. I too-often hear from scrapbookers that your daily life tort too boring to scrapbook, that you couldn’t possible find 365 moments to photograph and celebrate. As I clap my hands together for the 50th time today and say “yay for Emily”, I know this couldn’t possibly be true.
3. Music makes it better. When I was feeling stuck, crabby or creatively uninspired in the past, I would stew on it or wait it out. I’ve learned from my daughter that just a little music can turn that frown upside down and change the course of the day. With music, we can find an ease that helps get photos edited and pages completed with enthusiasm.
4. The center of the action is where it’s at. I remember friends telling me that I was sure to be a mamarazzi with my camera ever-present and at-the-ready. While this made sense when it came to extended family, with my own child I would rather be a part of the moment than watching it.
5. There is no pause button. Life goes really really fast. I don’t know how many times I didn’t write something down in the moment because I was sure I wouldn’t forget. And of course, I did. To keep up with this pace, I’ve had to let go of a little perfectionism and employ even more time-saving tricks to make sure I got the important stuff recorded.
Not only has my scrapbooking changed, but my passion for storytelling is that much more alive. I now see the world through her eyes, a viewpoint that offers a new joy and ease in my memory keeping practice. What have your kids taught you about scrapbooking?
As I stood peeling carrots at the sink the other night, I was privileged to be included in the conversation my young adult son was having with his girlfriend. It all came home – they were pouring over our family scrapbooks. These were MY pictures, and HIS memories. 🙂 The stories can go on without me. My kids taught me to live in the moment, and then let the moments live on!
In response to #4, I am really, really happy to say that while I enjoy and appreciate moments captured on film, I am not a victim of it nor do I mourn for photos not taken if it doesn’t happen. I would MUCH rather be a part of the action and experiences than recording them. I have photos (more than enough) and they are wonderful but I will never regret the ones not taken if that meant I was in the moment. (I would have bet a lot of $$ before having her that I would have been really tied up in the picture taking….)