Why I Scrapbook.
What’s the point of scrapbooking?
Ever ponder this? Why all the fuss? Why all the stuff? WHY? WHY? WHY?
This is my story…
I started scrapbooking in 2000 because it was FUN and I got to hang out with my friend, Ciaran, who was (at the time) a CM Consultant. We had fun buying flat stickers and using deco scissors on EVERY photo. Ciaran and I even went on a Memory Makers cruise together and we had a blast playing with chalk and learning how to use a Coluzzle. We got to meet some scrapbooking celebrities including Debbie Mock. We had fun and laughed, and just enjoyed this newfound hobby.
Hobby is defined as a spare-time recreational pursuit.
And in the beginning this is exactly what scrapbooking was for me…a spare-time pursuit. Something to keep me busy while Frank worked. I would play at the dining room table in our tiny apartment and watch TV…looking at old pictures and remembering great times once had. I enjoyed it. Then we moved into a home and I got a small space all my own for my hobby. I had a table and a bookshelf in the office that I used to spend time in when Frank on duty at the Sheriff’s dept.
Then Frank went to Iraq in the initial phase of Operation Iraqi Freedom (Jan03-Nov03). I was afraid, lonely, scared, depressed, proud, angry, tired, and so many more emotions that I cannot express in words. I sent him so many boxes and letters and poems and disposable cameras. He in return would send me photos…and lots of them.
It was then that I realized that my “hobby” was recording HISTORY.
During 2003 that’s what I did…I recorded and documented and scrapped. I would run to the mailbox and squeal with excitement when photos came. The photos would tell me where they were, what they were doing, and most importantly HOW they were doing. While Frank was at war I was scrapbooking (and watching FOXNEWS 24/7). I was recording history and making a book just for him. Where he can look and remember, where he can feel connected to his brothers, and where he can cry, be angry and proud all at the same time.
When Frank returned from Iraq we purchased a new home. One where we can grow with more space, and a basement for those crazy tornados that pop up out of nowhere. I have my own scrapbook room that he helped me design. A place where we go to relive memories and enjoy our life together.
Now why all the accents and embellishments and papers and notions? That’s the fun of it! It’s also another way to tell the story. The history of styles and fads, the history of learning my own personal style and the enjoyment of playing like a child again.
Today scrapbooking is more than a hobby – it’s my own personal journal with photos! I don't scrapbook for anyone to say "look how cute that is!" or "how did you do that?" I want them to see the story and feel the emotion. A compliment is always an added plus! {you know what I mean} I don't need to have the coolest paper and the most trendiest supplies to make my memories last forever.
And that's my scrapbook story!
Ever ponder this? Why all the fuss? Why all the stuff? WHY? WHY? WHY?
This is my story…
I started scrapbooking in 2000 because it was FUN and I got to hang out with my friend, Ciaran, who was (at the time) a CM Consultant. We had fun buying flat stickers and using deco scissors on EVERY photo. Ciaran and I even went on a Memory Makers cruise together and we had a blast playing with chalk and learning how to use a Coluzzle. We got to meet some scrapbooking celebrities including Debbie Mock. We had fun and laughed, and just enjoyed this newfound hobby.
Hobby is defined as a spare-time recreational pursuit.
And in the beginning this is exactly what scrapbooking was for me…a spare-time pursuit. Something to keep me busy while Frank worked. I would play at the dining room table in our tiny apartment and watch TV…looking at old pictures and remembering great times once had. I enjoyed it. Then we moved into a home and I got a small space all my own for my hobby. I had a table and a bookshelf in the office that I used to spend time in when Frank on duty at the Sheriff’s dept.
Then Frank went to Iraq in the initial phase of Operation Iraqi Freedom (Jan03-Nov03). I was afraid, lonely, scared, depressed, proud, angry, tired, and so many more emotions that I cannot express in words. I sent him so many boxes and letters and poems and disposable cameras. He in return would send me photos…and lots of them.
It was then that I realized that my “hobby” was recording HISTORY.
During 2003 that’s what I did…I recorded and documented and scrapped. I would run to the mailbox and squeal with excitement when photos came. The photos would tell me where they were, what they were doing, and most importantly HOW they were doing. While Frank was at war I was scrapbooking (and watching FOXNEWS 24/7). I was recording history and making a book just for him. Where he can look and remember, where he can feel connected to his brothers, and where he can cry, be angry and proud all at the same time.
When Frank returned from Iraq we purchased a new home. One where we can grow with more space, and a basement for those crazy tornados that pop up out of nowhere. I have my own scrapbook room that he helped me design. A place where we go to relive memories and enjoy our life together.
Now why all the accents and embellishments and papers and notions? That’s the fun of it! It’s also another way to tell the story. The history of styles and fads, the history of learning my own personal style and the enjoyment of playing like a child again.
Today scrapbooking is more than a hobby – it’s my own personal journal with photos! I don't scrapbook for anyone to say "look how cute that is!" or "how did you do that?" I want them to see the story and feel the emotion. A compliment is always an added plus! {you know what I mean} I don't need to have the coolest paper and the most trendiest supplies to make my memories last forever.
And that's my scrapbook story!
posted by Jen at 3:11 PM
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