A piece of family

You know how things go when someone passes away. If they don’t have a spouse or haven’t already set in their will who gets what, their stuff either gets sold in an estate sale or distributed between family. Well, our family was a mix.

When my grandmother passed she had a will and she also made things clear on what she wanted. Little did my sister and I know, she wanted us to have her jewelry. We were honored. And most of it was costume jewelry, or pins, but there were some very special pieces in there. So once we divided what we wanted, the remainder of her jewelry stayed with me as my sister didn’t want to lug it all back on the flight home.

Fast forward some time when my uncle (who lived with my grandmother) was ill. There were things he needed and at the time, I wasn’t working so I traveled to Jersey every month to help out, etc. He gave me all of her fine china for doing so much for him. And that’s the china I remember from those Christmas parties she and my grandfather had every year. It was always so pretty and I was always told by my mom to not touch it. (I honestly think my mom wanted it so she wanted it all in one piece).

And now fast forward some more time. My uncle has passed and everything in the house needed to go. So one night I was scrolling on Facebook and what do I see? A bunch of my grandparents stuff on my cousins page. I was shocked and a little hurt that no one thought to ask me first if I wanted anything. Hell, I still would have paid for it too! Anyways, I messaged him and his girlfriend and my uncle and let them all know I wanted her cedar chest. It’s big a beautiful and something I remember when I was a kid.

So they set a sold sign on it and I quickly made plans to go up a few weeks later and get it. Actually, it worked out perfectly because James and I could get his truck back too (yes, Tank was broken and up in Jersey for over a year – but that’s another whole story that I’ll share later).

Went to Jersey to get the cedar chest and anything else I might have wanted. The only other thing that really stuck out at me was this mail hold.

Just a three slot holder that always hung in their kitchen. I remember as a kid thinking it was so cool. Maybe because there were ‘letters’ in there (that later turned out to be bills). But still. I loved it as a child, and I love it as an adult. So I added that to my pile of stuff.

I stupidly forgot to put it in my car when we left so this past weekend I was reunited with it and now it’s safely on my dresser waiting to be packed.

But the point I am trying to make is now, I have a piece of family history in my new home. Things I loved seeing as a child, I will get to see every day as an adult and my kids will get to eventually have. And I’m hoping these little pieces of history will keep being handed down.

So, if you are ever in a spot where someone asks you if you want something after they pass or if you want something because someone has passed, take it. Bring that history to your own home. Even if they are the first ones who had it and you can buy the same thing brand new. That history can be passed down and travel through time.