Two
prints on the wall of our office. Fairly well-known paintings.
We picked them up in a gift shop after visiting a museum while
on vacation.
We
love them. No need to be too specific, however, because the specifics
aren’t the point of this essay. Instead, it’s about something
else these two items create.
Terry
and I were on vacation with Justin and Jason. When we visited
the museum, we saw the originals on display and picked up the
prints in the gift shop.
I
still remember visiting that museum, wandering around, and talking
about some of the paintings, sculptures and gardens with each
other. It was a wonderful, memorable few hours on the grounds.
Part of that was what we saw, but most of it was the company involved.
It
isn’t about the images I have framed. I do enjoy them. I like
looking at them. But the reason we have them framed and on the
wall is in no small part because of a Sunday where the four of
us had a really nice afternoon. It’s the memory associated with
them that creates the magic.
If
I went room to room in my home, I think I would begin to find
that the most valued possessions of ours would be items that can
claim a similar way of being appreciated. The connections it has
to family, friends and moments in time is likely going to finish
far higher on the list than any if-we-put-it-on-the-market cash
worth.
In
our living room is a vase. We have it on display, simply as is,
with no flowers or such. We picked it up in Las Vegas on a trip
with some dear friends. It is an item that can trigger about fifteen
different stories, unlimited smiles, and cherished memories that
can never be repeated. I know we paid less than twenty dollars
for it.
Another
room has a ladder on the wall. Terry had seen one used to display
things in someone’s house and seemed to remember we had one in
the garage of our house. When we moved in, we found it, an object
left behind by some previous owner. Sanded it lightly, added a
bit of stain, and now it’s on the wall. I don’t think we even
had to buy sandpaper or a can of stain for it, just using what
we already had. So for the cost of physically moving it, we have
dozens of memories on display. Plus, the comments it gets for
a unique piece just keep coming from everyone that walks into
that room for the first time.
Now,
in an emergency, of course I’m not grabbing that ladder as one
of the things I’d try to save. But the idea remains consistent
to where we started. The things we find valuable in our home are
valuable for reasons far more important to us than the cost. I’m
guessing—and it may be just a guess—many of you have items that
fall right into this area as well.
When
I was in school, around the age of ten or eleven, a friend of
mine lost his house to a fire. Everyone was safe, so that part
is good. The tricky bit is when it really connected with me.
Much
to the frustrations of my parents, I used to collect stickers.
All kinds of stickers. Think bumper sticker bought at a theme
park or gift shop and you’d be in the right frame of mind. I took
those stickers and covered my bedroom door. And when I say covered,
yes, that means completely front and back with stickers.
When
I got home from school the day I heard about the fire, I remember
seeing the door to my room. That’s when it really hit me that
there were things he lost that would never be replaced. Photos
and trophies and all sorts of items that were important to him,
but could never be found by stopping in a department store to
pick up a new one.
So,
take a moment to appreciate some of the things you have. Some
of us have several, and some of us have only a few. (And, some
of us stockpile and pack away things to unhealthy levels.) There
is a definition of priceless, and it turns out that all of us
have some things that fit that category.