after a very difficult week, friday afternoon i indulged in a little scrapbook therapy.
before i go on, i would like to express my heartfelt gratitude for all of your kind words and compassion for my last post. it truly is a comfort to know that i’m not alone in my heartache.
so…a few things i would like mention about this…
- my love for memory keeping was completely validated when i went back through a couple of old scrapbooks to find these pictures of kelsey and pumpkin. oh my heart. there in those pages were my little girl at seven years old and her new kitten. i was instantly transported and felt totally connected to a very special place and time in our lives. and these distant memories…they were made so very real and TANGIBLE. for the love of tangible memories….reason #4,687 why i love scrapbooking.
- looking back at these pages, i smiled to myself at this ‘old-fashioned’ style of scrapbooking. sort of like when i smile when i see myself with big bangs or high-waisted jeans. but short of the warm fuzzy i get when i think about my friday afternoon scrapping buddies (when i probably made these pages to begin with), the details of this page aren’t really what’s important at all. so it is a good reminder to myself to not get too caught up finding the perfect core kit or embellishments…knowing that sixteen years from now, i’m not going to give two shits about what kind of chipboard pieces or phrase stickers i used. scrapbooking is telling the story of my life in words and photos. the end. amen.
- as part of my intention for my word for this year – CONNECT – i am paying very special attention to where my heart is at in my thoughts and actions. in this case, my heart was hurting over the loss of a beloved family pet. so, i let myself be sad. i didn’t blow it off or gloss over it. i didn’t compare my hurt to the sorrow and suffering of others. i didn’t busy up my life to avoid feeling something painful. i gave myself permission to feel the fullest of the emotion in the moment. i gave myself the gift of mercy and compassion…just like i would for anyone else.
and then i made something. i connected to the deepest part of my soul and told the story with words and photos.
it has made all the difference.
thank you from the bottom of my heart for letting me share my stories and photos with you.
love, kelly
Mercy and compassion. Oh Kelly, Kelly. I would not even BE scrapbooking if not for you, truly, you and Terri giving me the inspiration and the nudge. You created these treasures and you continue to create them. I am so deeply proud of you for being present with your feelings, for letting yourself feel it all, and for creating, out of that place. I am so grateful to you and so proud of you. Love to dear you.