Thanks for the Memories . . .

Hello again. I have been on a brief hiatus due to the fact that I had to get a new computer.
Having said this, on with the show. And thanks for being patient. I appreciate it.

                                                                   Thinking of You

Oh, the memories! With each and every card I opened, a flood of recollections hit me like a 'ton of bricks.' Some of those bricks were still whole, others sadly reduced to chucks, and others into dust. Most of them brought a smile to my face, others made me laugh, but for those whose once truthful words of congratulations, support, and love that had turned to sand, I shook my head in despair. Then I asked my self, do I hold onto these cards and letters that make me sad or shred and trash them? At the time I wrote this I had no answer. So I put the cards away and thought about what to do later. Later came and here is what I did.

I organized them.

First I separated the cards by subject matter. Then by person to whom the card went to. Then once again into groups; birthday wishes, holidays, etc. Then by chronological order. Time consuming - you bet. Sometimes I did this sorting at the same time watching TV, which made the task less daunting. After that, I went back through the cards and kept some and discarded others. At times my heartstrings played a melancholy tune, but most of the time I enjoyed reading the cards again.

 

Why, you may ask, should you do all this work? Because it gives you the opportunity to revisit that moment in time and surprisingly enough, will make you smile, even giggle a bit. But for those negative memories I mentioned above, do not hesitate to throw away those cards. There is no conceivable reason why you should have to grin and bear something sad that happened a time ago. It’s over, move on. At first it was hard for me to do, but as I felt my heart get lighter I knew I was doing something good for me, and eventually the family. So will you.
 

Next, I found a pretty box, sometime more then one per person; husband/dad, wife/mom, children, son/daughter, sibling(s)-brother/sister, and other family (parents/grandparents/relatives) and friends. Then I put a bow around each box and gave each family member their “Card Box” as a Christmas gift. You can’t imagine the surprised look on their faces when they opened the box and found their old greeting cards, along with other memento, for example, photos, drawings and other keepsakes.
 

As they opened their boxes, I heard, “What’s this? Cards from Papa?” “You mean you saved them?” “Oh my goodness! I remember this card.” “Gee, thanks Sis for thinking about me.” “Honey, I love you more today than yesterday, and I believe you still do,” said my husband has his eyes glistened with happy tears.

Get the picture!

So with this introduction, I will share with you some of my stories and images of the cards I saved. Then perhaps they will inspire you to do the same.

Next Post: This post is an introduction to this weeks posts on Greeting Cards.
                  As you know there are many categories of cards, and I will focus
                  on them, sharing with you thoughts, ideas and pictures.