"...you need to assess what you love right now and what
is authentic to your way of living in this season of life."
MELISSA MICHAELS, quote found on GoodReads
Most recently, I've been focusing on my stacks of boxes filled with old greeting cards. What fun it has been to go through them. Finding cards from people I haven't seen in years, from people long gone from this earth, from ones I still love and hold dear.
Traditionally greetings cards are meant to be fleeting sentiments to be enjoyed for a short time, then discarded. Why do so many of us hold onto boxes of old cards? Basically, because they often still tug at the heart strings. I can't bear to throw away cards with such charming pictures and artwork. How quickly the era of the time sifts up just by looking at those cards. And inside, the lovely personal notes—fingerprints of kindness, concern, and friendship that left their imprint on my life—all dear reminders of certain people, places, and seasons that meant so much at the time.
I found the stack of boxes carefully labelled 'love letters' holding all the cards and letters Rick and I exchanged from the very beginning of our life together. There are quite a few—I tell you, we must have kept Hallmark and Carlton in business. I keep the cards on display a long time before they are finally packed away. I've never gone through them, but as we near our 25th anniversary in a few weeks, it might be the year to pop those lids and reread all that we'd given each other in the written word. What I did find hard was going through the pile of sympathy cards from when my dad passed away—twenty years ago next month. It brought back all those memories, fraught with sadness. I'm grateful for the care of my friends at that time, but I won't be revisiting those cards anymore.
All that being said, I no longer want to caretake all these cards. I won't part with them all, but I also don't want to leave a mess for others to deal with... down the road. What to do, what to do? Here are a few things I'm doing with them. And if you care to share, I'd love to know how you tackle your old card collections:
1. If I'm going to cull it, I read the card one last time, think nice thoughts about the person, whisper a thank you, and let it go.
2. If the card fronts are too beautiful to discard, I repurpose them—cutting into gift tags, tree ornaments, or embellishments for scrapbooks, journals, and envelopes. I love to use floral cutouts as surprise inserts in cards and notes I send out. Other cards, such as pop-up cards, make great additions to photo shoots for future blog posts. Or Instagram posts. I know some people make junk journals—old cards would be perfect additions in such a creative project. The cards haven't disappeared but have reappeared in other forms, which is fun to spot.
3. Write blog posts about them. One thing I have discovered is that when I write down these sorts of memories, often in blog posts and essays, I no longer need all the physical touchstones, including the cards, as reminders.
4. The cards that still bring me immense joy when I look at them, that remind me of a special relationship or unique time in my life, well, those I put back into the 'keep these' box. Some things are just meant to 'stay' until we no longer need them.
5. Cards I don't need to keep, I remove the personal notes and donate the fronts to our local recycling centre for crafters and schools to use. It makes me happy to think that someone will get pleasure out them one last time.
4. The cards that still bring me immense joy when I look at them, that remind me of a special relationship or unique time in my life, well, those I put back into the 'keep these' box. Some things are just meant to 'stay' until we no longer need them.
5. Cards I don't need to keep, I remove the personal notes and donate the fronts to our local recycling centre for crafters and schools to use. It makes me happy to think that someone will get pleasure out them one last time.
On that note, I find these words attributed to Albert Einstein a fitting closure for today's musings: "Out of clutter find simplicity...".
❦
Here's wishing you a beautiful week ahead,
Brenda
Photo Credits:
Top Image by Margarita Kochneva from Pixabay
thanks great ideas as i'm nearing the end of my journey in the future sometime, n ow 83 years old. I'm enjoying rereading especially old journals and letters and realizing all that I've experienced through the years. Some i toss but I like the idea of blogging about them. Thanks. Lin Floyd
ReplyDeleteLovely to hear from you, Lin. This week I'm working on photos - I have three tubs of pre-digital photos, filed by year, but are not in albums. Culling will be in order. And I look forward to having pics in an album to browse through. It's nice to find photos of people and events that bring a whoosh of memories to the forefront. Remembering the good times. Some do come with less happy memories too. Such is the mix of life. Take care, Lin. xo
DeleteI looked at a stack of old greeting cards just yesterday and thought, "Time to go through them again." I have some from my grandmothers and aunts who have passed on, and I'm thinking of taking photos of them to keep digitally. Not quite the same, but the memory will still be there without the clutter in my home. I do use pretty cards as bookmarks or gift tags, too. Blogging about cards is a great idea, too. Thanks, Brenda. Hope your Sunday is a lovely one.
ReplyDeleteLorrie, I like your idea of to create bookmarks from the cards we love. The day dawned here this morning with a gorgeous sunrise. But it's quite blustery today - even Winnie would have a hard time staying solid on the ground. (Ha). Wishing you a beautiful day.
DeleteI swear Brenda!☺️💗You seem to think about everything that I love and or deal with!!☺️
ReplyDeleteCards and letters! Yes, I’m a “keeper!” I grew up seeing my Mother keep Christmas cards and it was her tradition and became mine to use the old cards for gift tags on the presents that went under the tree. The signatures and notes were cut off and the card was used again. I like finding cards that either “speak to the gift” or look pretty with the wrapping paper.
I have a friend who makes beautiful, creative cards and those I now keep in a decorative box.
It always is a treasure to find letters from the past; particularly letters that were written by descendants of ours and I have been fortunate to have some of those.
When I turned 60 a friend of mine asked other friends who were coming to help me celebrate to write a letter to me.
She had purchased a beautiful wooden box to contain those letters and put a big bow around it. There is only 1 person who I do not still see today so that box will always be fun to read.
A VERY Happy Anniversary to you and your husband next week ( or soon)! How special it will be to look through those as you celebrate your loving years.💖
As always, I SO appreciate your thoughts. They truly bring me happiness!!!!!!!☺️ Enjoy your Canadian Fall!!🍁 ~ Ann from Ohio💗
Empathic souls, Ann, maybe we're both cut from the same cloth? I have received many handmade cards from dear people over the years; those are the hardest to let go of, so I have quite a stack. But maybe the time comes to share the beauty with others by turning the card into something new. I'll try. Thanks for the anniversary wishes (the big day is near the end of the month). Our Canadian Fall has been quite lovely. We had snow a few weeks ago, but the warmish weather melted it. Drives out in the countryside are still quite delightful. Thanks for your note... sending heart hugs your way. ((( 💖 )))
DeleteSuch lovely ideas, Brenda! I admit, I am a saver, too, and have often thought of what I should do with all of those keepsakes. Congratulations on your wedding anniversary! A beautiful milestone. xx K
ReplyDeleteThanks, Karen, for your good wishes. I wish you much creativity as you think about what you could do with your treasured keepsakes. Happy day! xo
DeleteI am a card-saver too! I really appreciate your ideas and suggestions because this is a task for sometime in my future as well!!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad those sorting/culling times don't have to be a burden but can be a time for reflection and gratitude... and creativity in pondering how to reuse or pass along. Thanks, Janet! xo
DeleteI remember how excited I was when we got to our 25th anniversary! I'm sure yours will be memorable. I too have boxes of cards and I'm not yet ready to let the more recent ones go yet.
ReplyDeleteI can well imagine those more recent cards will be the most precious at this stage. And perhaps they can never be parted with - which is perfectly fine, too! Thanks, Barbara, for stopping by. xo
DeleteI'm a card hoarder so this post really reasonated with me!
ReplyDeleteI have about 2-3 plastic bins filled with cards and letters from the last 30+ years. I'll have to remember your 5 suggestions when I try to purge some of my olds cards.
It's hard to let go of things that still add joy and comfort. I have come to see that there are seasons when we are more ready to release things. Age really has something to do with it, as far as I can see. Best not to hurry those seasons, unless it becomes needful - ie, if we need to move into smaller quarters and can't take it all. In the meantime, we keep them tucked in a little used corner until we're ready to go through them. What's the harm, right? Thanks, Margie, for stopping by. xo
DeleteOh my, old cards and letters.
ReplyDeleteI love cards ... I started collecting new and unused cards when I was a teenager, for the purpose of sending out to people, which I did, but I always had way more than I sent out. I know where that stash is, but I have to admit I'm not even sure where the old letters and cards I've received reside. I'd have to think about where they might be for quite a while! And, like you, I'll have to do something with them ... someday.
Happy Anniversary to you and Rick!
Like you, since my teens I have loved collecting cards for giving; some were blank but more often I looked for cards that already had the messages I wanted to convey. (I didn't know I was a writer back then - hehe.) Thanks, Joy, for your good wishes - anniversary is in a couple of weeks.
DeleteI save cards and notes and letters, too. Every so often, I enjoy a few hours going through them and culling them in the ways you've described. I try not to stress over the number saved anymore. I know that in time, I'll be able to let more go. For the moment, it's nice to enjoy the memories again.
ReplyDeleteI agree, Karen, it really isn't worth stressing over the numbers held onto. We do what we can in the season we're in. And yes, it's nice to enjoy those memories again as we look at old cards and notes. Thanks for stopping by.
DeleteHi Brenda. I have had hundreds of cards during the course of a lifetime and saved MOST of them. I still have many. A really huge bag of favorite ones has disappeared. I think, perhaps, someone in my family dumped them when I went on vacation. I'm still lamenting not finding them. I have many other boxes filled with them and I'm going to have to decide which to keep and which to save. I also paste card fronts on the left hand pages of my gratitude journal. I just LOVE greeting cards. Love, love, LOVE them, so your post made me very happy. I like to think there are others, like yourself, who love cards, too!
ReplyDeleteOh, how disappointing to realize something you still wanted went missing. I know the dismay of that - a very precious poem a dear friend penned for me years ago went missing; I felt the loss then, and even now, after all these years. Your comment squeezed my heart happy - thank you for taking the time to share, Susan. xo
DeleteThis post resonates with me! When we moved seven years ago, I went through lots of old cards. I discarded some, but kept many because I ran out of time to make decisions. I need to be brave and follow your five pointers. Applause to you for tackling such a task!
ReplyDeleteCards can be one of those fine threads that hold friendships together. Every note written or card sent creates a tapestry of connection and affection. For many of us, it is hard to disengage. My hubby on the other hand is quite able to pop the card in the bin once he's read and enjoyed a card. It's a momentary pleasure that he doesn't feel the need to keep near to hand forever. Thanks so much, Cheryl, for your presence here. xo
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