Today J and I did some much needed orgainizing in the garage. It is amazing how much junk can accumulate in such a short time. We have had more yard sales in the past 4 years than we have in our 26 years of marriage so I don't understand why we have more stuff now than ever.
As usual when organizing and cleaning we found a few treasures from the past mixed in with all the junk. Most people (probably including my husband) would say, "why do you think that is a treasure?" Well, I really can't tell you why other than the fact that I am a sentimental fool who loves to look back at things past.
The best treasure we found was a box marked with my name on it. We opened it and found it was filled with a menagerie of items from my childhood. There was a dress my mother made me for the bi-centenial celebration in 1976, a tiny jersey from my career in softball, a book given to me by a friend of my grandmother, some old photos, birthday cards, valentines from who knows what grade, my cap and diploma from my high school graduation, and some old pictures and letters from my school days.
The letters turned out to be a real hoot for me. I found letters written by my little sister which described her feelings for me. I don't know what I had done to that girl but she was obviously pretty upset with me. I found a letter from a best friend from junior high inviting me to spend the night at her house the next weekend. The box also contained lots of letters from a pen pal that I wrote to for several years. There were several letters from a girl I am sure was trying to pry information from me because we liked the same boy. I also found a few sweet notes from admirers proclaiming their love for me. Those notes were so sweet. The boys really put their hearts on the line and it pains me that I can't remember how I handled those situations. They were sweet innocent letters from adolescent boys who braved the courage to tell a girl how they felt. I hope I was kind and considerate of their feelings when I responded to them but I am so afraid that in my shyness I probably handled it all wrong.
When I think of times from my past when someone reached out to me I find myself wishing that I could go back in time. If I could I would go back and relive lots of moments when my shyness gave others the impression that I was a snob or that I was making light of their feelings. It is amazing how much perspective time can provide. Reading those letters today made me realize how often I was misunderstood and how often I most likely misunderstood those around me. For that I am truly sorry. That little box held a lot of lessons for me and gave me more than a few laughs. Boy, did I need that today!!
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