Browsing the online magazine of one of my favorite hobbies (scrapbooking), I found this article. It made me think for a while the reasons why I scrapbook... In the meanwhile, here it is for your own enlightment. The original buzz can be found here, at Article on Scrapbook Magazine
WHY I SCRAPBOOK: DOCUMENTING LIFE
By Nicole Stern for Scrapbook Magazine Chatterbox
"The answer to this question has evolved over the years as I have evolved. I use to love creating beautiful layouts for my albums with the latest and greatest products that just arrived at my local scrapbook store, but after a life changing accident a year ago, my prospective drastically changed. I now look at the craft of scrapbooking as “documenting life.”
I went from being a carefree 27 year-old woman to a traumatic brain injury patient in the ICU in a matter of seconds. Faced with a long road ahead of me, I was asked to keep a personal account of my recovery. I have kept journals on and off from my childhood, college and a trip to Europe but to actually write down my true feelings about such a traumatic event was something that I had never done before. I didn’t write…I hated writing…and to write something so personal that someone could read if they just looked seemed so…violating.
As I look back at a year’s worth of thoughts and feelings, I realized that my journal is a piece of me and the life lessons I’ve learned. These lessons are something I can pass on and if I didn’t, my stories would die with me…stories that could possible change my future generations. I have no idea who may need to hear something I’ve said or the way I said it. Hearing my story might be the one thing that gets them through a struggle in their life. Or, they may find comfort through my experiences.
Documenting one’s life story is fairly plain and simple. The most important part is the story. I start the process of my story by writing the thoughts and feelings that are in my heart and in my head down on paper. It could be the story of how I met my husband, something funny that happened during my college years, or a detailed account of a favorite vacation. And, remember to document and write down your stories of not only the happy, funny, joyful times but also those sad moments in life, the struggles, the heartbreak, because that’s real life. Now, I prefer to go to a past journal and read about past struggles or victories and scrapbook them.
Once I have my story or thoughts written down, the next step is deciding on the type of album. What size would work best? Because my focus is the story, my pages may consist of simply putting a picture with photo corners along with only journaling. In the end, I’ve created a meaningful album that not only documents my life at that moment but keeps it uncluttered and finished.
What is my intent with this album? What do I want to convey to the reader? Will my great-granddaughter find this album and read it 50 years from now? What will she think? These are questions I ask myself throughout every album project.
For me, the reason I scrapbook isn’t to look at page after page of professional quality photos and beautiful pattern paper and tons of embellishments. It isn’t about creating that perfect page time and time again. It isn’t about spending hours on one page. It is about the story. The story of my life. How my words can affect those around me. How my words and experiences can live on for generations to come. I want the good, the bad, and the difficult times to show through in my albums. For this is the most important reason I scrapbook."
Sounds like a damn good scrapbooking reason for me!
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