400 Words

The following 'Project #105' from 52 Projects speaks to me. To remember the past and the present of my life is one of the reasons I started to blog.

Write the story of your life in 400 words. (Or fold a sheet of paper in half, and write the story of your life on it.) When you are done, write the story of your life in 400 words again -- but don't repeat a single detail. The first time, write about all the houses you ever lived in. Then write about all the jobs you ever had. All the people you kissed. What you wanted, when. Then write about the people you knew and how they influenced you. Write about the clothes you've worn. The foods you've eaten. The things you believed. The times you changed your mind. Embarrassments. Triumphs. Write about the forces of history that have shaped you: what was going on in the world when you were born, or the first story on the news that you remember? Write about the way you looked or the way that you thought you looked. How many different people lurk inside the truth of you? ~ Katherine Sharpe

This process will really help me with my scrapbooking and this blog. I found this quote and it sums up perfectly why I feel scrapbooking/journaling is important. I wish my ancestors had done so.

No matter how it's done, scrapping is more than a simple hobby to display the latest baby's photos or showcase the creator's talents with the most up-to-date tools. It's a way to preserve the past for our future, to make our mark on the world, and to love those whom we cannot know. As they say, you can't move forward if you don't know where you come from. As scrappers, we take on the responsibility of teaching our children and their children that each person's story is special and deserves to be documented.