Following postcards, key chains may be the second most popular souvenir option. And similar to bookmarks, I have much more key chains than needed.
Most of them are souvenirs from friends, some of them are from my own regrettably limited traveling. Of course there are also key chains that are not traveling-related but still have remembrance values – like those received from previously leased cars and those received from weddings.
When I was in elementary school, my sister Susanna introduced me to the hobby of collecting stamps. I would meticulously cut off the stamps from letters, then soak, dry, and carefully put them in my stamp album. To further encourage me, my sister even gave me her entire stamp collection!
I enjoy seeing the stamp designs and reading the stories behind them, but I was never really an enthusiastic stamp collector.
Sometimes I wonder if people still collect stamps nowadays when emails are quickly replacing traditional letters. And who can I pass on this hobby to?
Today, I’ve archived all the bookmarks I’ve received over the years. I’m guessing there were about 50 of them.
Most of them were from b/s in my fellowships. The bookmarks failed to deliver their physical usefulness as I didn’t fall in love with books until recently. However, the words of encouragements written on them offered comfort for knowing that I were in others’ thoughts and prayers, and to me this is far more important.
One particular bookmark tickled my fancy. It was written by myself on May 17th, 2003 (probably during Church Retreat). In it were 3 short questions I dropped down:
Once in a while, those questions would pop up in my mind. I’ve always believed that each of us is uniquely created by God to live a purposeful and fulfilling life.
He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God. (Micah 6:8)
After archiving my postcards, letters and greeting cards, I’ve spent the last few days archiving (almost) all my photos – more than 300 were scanned!
I’ve found my kindergarten graduation photo which my dad used to put in his wallet. There’s also this photo of me, my dad, and my brother during a family trip in Thailand. I was probably in Grade 1 or 2. I remember going on that trip and almost got drowned in the resort’s pool, but I don’t remember myself looking that adorable and my dad appearing so young in his golden age…
I thank God for my family.
After archiving my letters, I continued my stroll down the memory lane and re-read all the greeting cards received over the last 10+ years in Canada.
Christmases, New Years, Birthdays, Graduations, Thank Yous, Farewells… there’s always a card that fits the special occasion. Every card represents my presence in someone’s mind, they’re proves of “Life affecting Life”. I thank God for giving me so many friends in life, and I pray that I’ll always be of positive influence on their lives.
I’ve spent more than half my life here in Toronto, but never before had I been up one of the most famous local landmarks – the CN Tower.
Some of my friends thoughtfully arranged a lunch gathering up there at the 360 Restaurant today. The aerial view of the city is spectacular! The food is decent (not that I’m concerned), and of course the best part is the delightful conversations with friends I don’t see often – it’s becoming more of a rare occasion as we all grow older.
Now I have one less place to visit before I leave Canada…
I’ve opened a time-capsule today!
There’s this huge cylindrical tin-can I use to put away all the letters I received. I opened it up and after sorting through the phone and bank statements, I’m left with a load of old letters written to me by my HK highschool friends.
I’ve spent the whole day sorting the letters by sender and date, and I actually re-read every single one of them afterwards! Such a pleasant stroll down the memory lane, it really didn’t seem that long ago when I moved to Canada…
I wonder how everyone is doing in HK now?
Continuing with my archival project(s), today I’ve scanned and uploaded all the postcards I’ve received over the years. I’ve re-read every single one of them during the process, such delightful memories to cherish…
I’m excited every time I receive a postcard. The photos on them are always so captivating, fueling your desire to experience the scenery in person. But what makes me more happy is the thought behind the postcard – a friend in the middle of a wonderful trip remembering me and took the time to send in his/her regards…
I’ve finished reading The Message!!
Received as a gift on my 30th birthday, The Message is an interesting translation of the New Testament. Using modern English, the book makes God’s Words more accessible to people of this age. Perhaps this is God’s way of narrating His never changing message in an ever changing world…
While I like to unclutter and clear out things I don’t need, there are certain things I like to archive. Things I would collect include stuff that I think might be useful later, things like tin cans, art supplies, and etc. But there are also things that have significant remembrance values – letters/gifts from friends and souvenirs from trips. It would be like throwing away a piece of my memory if I toss away one of these items…
Today, I was archiving some of the files from my graduate study, it sure did bring back a lot of good memories. My fondest memory of the one-year program is probably tied to my research group – a diversified group of colleagues and a competent yet humorous Greek supervisor!
| S | M | T | W | T | F | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |||
| 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 |
| 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
| 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 |
| 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | |
© 2023 Tony Law's Website. All Rights Reserved.
