Here is another perspective on why its important to scrapbook.
It's Christmas time and we’re busy with the hustle and bustle of getting ready for Christmas day. Christmas is a time to remember family and friends and to reflect on the past years accomplishments. It’s a time to tell loved ones how much we appreciate them and that we are so blessed to have them in our lives. These, of course, are a perfect reasons why its important to scrapbook.
I also like to take a moment to remember why this time of year is very important to me as a Christian. God sent his son to be born and to die on the cross. Now, the gospel has been spread to all corners of the earth and we await his return once more.
Unfortunately, not everyone in the world is in the Christmas spirit. I don't know about you, but world peace is on my list again, this year.
But lets talk about some modern day Grinches closer to home!
Crime is very high around Christmas time. Last week the elementary school was vandelized. Lots of damage was done to the school. They painted profanity on the library walls and took many valuable items such as cameras and microphones. They even stole my daughter’s book bag. Thankfully these items have very little sentimental value and the school has resources to replace them.
I have a feeling they will catch the kids who did this as they fortunately left some pretty incriminating evidence behind. But even if they do catch them, I doubt Lauren will want her book bag back. A this point, its better to just move forward with something new. Somethings are valuable to theives, that are not valuable to us at all.
On a more serious note, yesterday my brother in law’s house was broken into. He was only gone for 2 hours and when he returned he found his back door kicked in. I’m sure his stomach was in knots at that moment. Many valuable and sentimental items were taken. Among those items was his inheritance from his father. Two gold and diamond rings, a watch, and gold coins all extremely valuable monetarily and sentimentally. My heart aches for him. Stealing those items is like stealing his father away again. Cancer already did that once, now faceless thieves have stolen the few things that reminded him of his father and his father’s many accomplishments.
There are very few men like my father in law. He was a rare perfect picture of tenacity and good luck. He never graduated high school but was a self made millionaire. Not only once, but he managed to do it two more times after a few left turns and losing it all. He had an amazing charisma to which I have yet to see its equal. People not only liked him, but they were drawn to him. He has an incredible career in the construction business. What a scrapbook that would have made. We would all love to go back and see the places he has constructed and the stories of how he did it. We would love to know people that he has met through the years. His funeral was standing room only and the walls were lined with a sea of flowers. I had no idea, absolutely no idea, how many people loved him and admired him.
The rings, the watch and gold coins are mementos of his hard work. He had something to prove to the world, and he worked hard to prove he could be successful. Those items stolen were a small part of who he was and the proof that he had “made it”. Now somebody has stolen that claim and my brother in law has nothing tangible, nothing physical to touch to remind him.
If there was a scrapbook lying on the table with my father in law’s career triumphs and failures recorded in a beautiful album, the thieves would have just passed it by. It wouldn’t have appealed to their greed. My brother in law would have something just as valuable, just as tangible, just as memorable as the stuff that was stolen. It would have been just as valuable as the items stolen. But alas, no such thing exists.
It is through joyous and/or through tragic occasions that we have clarity of what is really valuable. I think the three wise men and sheppards who visited Jesus would agree with that. So this coming new year, make scrapbooking one of your resolutions. Not only will it give you clarity of what is really valuable in your life, it will be something uniquely valuable to you and to your family.
Hey.....he's still long enough for one picture!!
