So I've started my winter project - scanning photographs, slides and negatives - in an effort to cut down on clutter by finally organizing them and disposing of unwanted items.
While I haven't made any noticeable difference in the amount of material I have, I have been throwing out some things after they are scanned. And I feel good about that.
As the last surviving member of my immediate family, any sense of continuity more or less ends with me. I do have a nephew, and a few cousins - but my nephew has never met of heard of the majority of the people in the photographs, and I am relying on my cousins to help fill in the gaps in my knowledge as I sort and scan.
The work appeals to the archivist/documentary/historian in me - I think that may be a function of age. Nothing like thinking of your own mortality to make you realize that whatever unique knowledge you have disappears when you die!
I think if I had felt this way at a much younger age, I would have had far more opportunity to properly organize things. But when I was younger, we didn't have computers and the internet as we know it to do these things. But, as my grandfather used to say 'too soon old, too late smart.'
So far, I have been enjoying the trip down memory lane - remembering family member who have passed. It's not without a sense of melancholy, but I am blessed to have so many fond and happy memories of time spent with family that it is a worthwhile remembrance for me.
No comments:
Post a Comment