All I really want for Christmas is my grand-dad’s stereo card viewer and his collection of vintage stereograph cards. They were a little warped the last time Dad shared them with me, but they still conjure lazy Sunday afternoons in Grandpa’s little study listening to the tick-tock of a mantle clock while I marveled at the Wonders of the World or Scenes from The Great War.
Dad isn’t quite ready yet to pass on this heirloom to the next generation, but I think I have some family treasures I might be ready move along to my sons and their families. If you are “re-gifting” family treasures this year, I hope you will take time to write a simple history for your family keepsake. It doesn’t have to be a long involved project, but even a simple sentence or two could keep your treasure from being tossed into the trash.
If you aren’t sure how to start, you can find ideas on crafting an heirloom history in my post Treasure Chest Thursday: Writing the History of Your Heirloom or on the Houstory Hearth Blog where Mike and Dan Hiestand, creators of The Heirloom Registry, write about saving family stories.
I love meeting people like the Houstory Brothers who are dedicated to helping people save family history by preserving the provenance along with the heirloom. The Heirloom Registry online service is designed to help “stop the stories from disappearing.” Whether you register your family keepsake on the Heirloom Registry or record it on paper and attach it to the item, by writing the history of your heirloom you are taking the single most important step toward preserving your family treasure.
Too many times, we inherit things that seem significant, we just can’t quite figure out why. Like the basket of stereo cards from my grandparents’ home. I know my own story — why I like the vintage cards — but, I wonder if Dad ever looked at those as a kid and how they have survived all these years? Now, there’s a conversation for our holiday gathering, and the beginning of an heirloom treasure tale.
