LL Cool Joe of Joey's Pad ask an interesting question on Patch It Up Baby. The post was about things Joe has kept over the years that have significance. The question was "What have you kept over the years that means something special to you?" My comment appeared to me to be a post in itself so I turned it into this post.
My parents asked in 1989 that we stop buying them Christmas presents. They had everything they needed and did not want us wasting our money. Instead my mother suggested, since we all had video cameras, she and dad would like each family to give them a video of the past year in review.
Mother gave us guidelines to follow. Each video should contain every family member and all our pets. They wanted us to reflect our individual talents,etc. The videos should be around 10 minutes in length. So we set out to take the challenge and starting in 1990 my brother's family, my sister's and mine presented our parents their first set of three Christmas videos. Sometimes we would ask if we couldn't just give the presents again. It was hard work and most of us were procrastinators, leaving the editing to the last minute, but the end results were fantastic and remain among our favorite possessions.
That is just about the coolest gift I have ever heard of. And now you have a continuous history of your family. Wonderful.
ReplyDeleteThat is awesome, Annie! What a great legacy! So much more meaningful than socks and sweaters!
ReplyDeleteAnnie,
ReplyDeleteWhat an interesting subject you have presented us..
In 1948 I was on my way to work at 7 A.M. on a bitterly cold January morning. I had to take a bus and a trolley car to my job.
When I got off of the bus I had to wait for the trolley on a corner that had a little shop with newspapers and magazines and books. Just to keep warm I went into the shop.
The trolley was very late appearing and after several minutes of waiting I was starting to feel embarrassed about not buying anything. So, when I noticed a slim volume of poems for sale for $1.00 I bought it.
It was the start of my love of poetry. I cherish that little book
and still read the poems today, 62 years later.
Lynn -- It is great and now I'm trying to convince our children that we would like videos for Christmas. My daughter's family has actually give us one that we treasure.
ReplyDeleteTalon -- Oh yes, much better than socks and sweaters.
Nancy -- My love of poetry started with A CHILD'S GARDEN OF VERSE by Robert Louis Stephenson. I still have that book on my shelf with multiple volumes of beloved poetry. Yes those are among my cherished things as well.
This is a thought provoking subject. I don't tend to keep a lot of things - mainly because my hubby keeps everything!
ReplyDeleteI've kept letters over the years. To me, writing takes effort and should be respected. Of course, I keep photos and anything I think that my children may want someday.
Your Mom had a great idea. I may ask my children for the same thing.
Thanks for your comment on my blog. If you do arrange for a blogger intervention, could I join you?? :) I am an addict! I couldn't wait for my hubby and grandson to get out the door this morning so that I could get to my computer.
Congratulations on losing that 10 lbs. I know from my experience that is NOT easy. Last fall, I started walking 2-3 miles several times a week and didn't lose an ounce. Of course, I may have used that as an excuse to eat a little more. :)
What a fantastic idea your Mom had...suppose to be a gift for them and ends up a gift for all.....precious.
ReplyDeletePat -- I am going to try again to cut back but if I fail again we just might need to schedule that intervention. LOL
ReplyDeleteChanges -- It was a fantastic idea on my mother's part. We all enjoyed it so much and you can probably imagine that it turned into a bit of a competition as each family attempted to outdo the other.
That's a lovely tradition. I'd be like you and want to give presents though.
ReplyDeleteThat is the coolest idea I have ever heard of. Elders appreciate family photos more than any other possession. It is also a great way to keep in touch.
ReplyDeleteThat sounds wonderful. I have asked my parents not to give us presents but they don't listen ;)
ReplyDeleteA couple of years ago, we decided to only get gifts for the little kids, and for adults, we'd donate to various charities. Everyone seems to like the idea so far.
Annie,
ReplyDeleteHere is a website for us:
http://darmano.typepad.com/bloggers_anonymous/
It's funny, but the truth of it is a little scarry :)
Bonnie (BIZ) -- My sister and I talked frantically one year as we were attempting to get our videos finished at the last minute and my sister said, "Don't you just wish we could give them a Cadillac or something instead of these videos?" But of course that deadline was part of the excitement and fun.
ReplyDeleteDarlene -- It was great and this way mother and dad learned about so many things in our year that we would all want to remember. Plus they loved to brag to their friends about their kid's videos.
Riot Kitty -- I can remember trying to convince my grandparents that we did not need gifts but they never gave up giving us wrapped trinkets until they just had to.
Pat -- I looked at that website and it's scary that there is something out there for us. I think I'll still try self help first. LOL
That was a great idea your parents had and I wish I'd thought of that!
ReplyDeleteAnnie, I love that idea and I think my in laws would too. My mom asked this past Christmas that we stop exchanging gifts. I understand because we are blessed and really don't need anything.
ReplyDeleteI've been scrolling through your blog and have really enjoyed it. Your chickens are so cute!
Kenju -- It is never too late to start a new tradition.
ReplyDeleteStacey -- Yes these videos are definitely for the ones who have everything. Thank you for dropping by my blog. I look forward to visiting you too.
This is a wonderful idea. I'm sure they loved it too.
ReplyDeleteI should pass this on to my children.
What a great idea your parents had for you to make videos. I guess one thing I have kept is my memories of seven and a half years I spent running a country store out in the middle of nowhere. I wrote all my memories down in a blog about that time in my life and recently had that blog made into a book for my children and grandchild. The were all thrilled since it was a part of their life, too.
ReplyDeleteWhat a fantastic idea! Time flies by and we sometimes take the every day for granted. Our parents watched us closely while we were in their "nest" but once we flew away, they lost that connection of the day to day. What a wonderful way to share these moments once again with the one's that brought us here... What a cherished gift.
ReplyDeleteBlessings to you and yours. Love and Light, Nina P
Wayyyyyyyyyyyyyy coooooooooooool!
ReplyDeleteHey thanks for the shout out, I'm glad my post inspired such an interesting one from you. Does sound like a great idea.
ReplyDeleteI certainly wouldn't want myself videoed over the years though. :D
Your parents had a wonderful idea. In 1990 I lost my husband of 32 years. For Christmas that year I made a VCR tape with all the bits that he was in and sent it to my 4 sisters. Just recently I realized I'd lost my copy and was hoping that they had saved theirs but no luck so far. All those memories on tape lost...it's heartbreaking.
ReplyDeleteWow Annie, that is a wonderful idea... Yeas ago when my 32 yr. old daughter was 18 months old, we visited with my husbands grandmother. We were working on genalogy at the time and we taped her talking about the family for a full hour... TF came home and made copies of the tape and we sent them to the whole family...We also sent one to Grannie and she loved it. Recently TF was able to put that tape on his Ipod and now he can listen to his grandmother any time he wants....
ReplyDeleteThat was a great idea from your mother.
ReplyDeleteWhen I graduated from College I received a very old necklace from my mother. I do not wear it every day but it is my most significant item.
I love that idea...right up my alley, too! I should start with my son's hockey games. Thanks, Annie...once again, you've inspired me.
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful way to "gift." Your parents were very wise.My girls made a video for our 23rd anniversary and it's the best give ever.
ReplyDeleteDon't forget about Woo Hoo! Wednesday coming up. You're invited and bring a Woo Hoo! :)
Clearly you came from wise parents. I wish I could do that, but my kids would definitely veto it...too busy.
ReplyDelete