Stuff on tour

A friend of mine visited my home recently. She had never been here before and, of course, we took “the tour” – that would be the traditional, 1950s child- hood staple … the tour of the whole house.
When we were kids, our moms called it “showing the rooms.” Today, many people don’t do it but, for boomers and our parents, showing a guest your whole house was simply the order of the day … well, at least it was in my environs.
As the world ages, people die but their stuff doesn’t; it just ends up at the flea market. Hopefully, some ends up with grand- children, to be cherished for at least one more generation and it’s a good sign when even young people can tell a story about some inherited gem, like a bedroom set, or wall sconces.
As my girlfriend and I walked around, we talked about what came from where, what was a gift, what belonged to whose mother or grandmother. Room by room, every item had a story. Many induced one from my friend, about her stuff. We chatted about our lives, travels, friends and family. We could have gone on all day with stories about any given photograph, or pair of lamps.
Many people treasure what grandma used even in the most utilitarian way, so it’s important to pass on the stories of that old wooden spoon or juice squeezer.
Recently, I showed my young grandson a photograph of an old aluminum ice cube tray. I asked him if he knew what it was. He’s brilliant, even learning to speak Latin, but the item was nothing of note, and from a foreign time zone. He deduced. He asked a few pertinent questions and drew a couple of very good conclusions. Still the object was nothing he recognized. After finding out what it was, he was very curious as to how it worked. He loved the game of it.
As we go through life, we gather information and learn about, not only our own world, but the world as it used to be. Books, such as those by Laura Ingalls, do much to put people in touch with an everyday American life we no longer experience. Oh sure, some of us may remember learning about churning butter from that old Casper cartoon, but reading books or watching programming about life in different times gives us a real grasp on the history of everyday living and its “stuff.”

Things don’t have to be antiques from grandmother to have a story either; sharing old and new history, both of family and things, could be a book for every single person around. We all know someone who makes quilts, loves antiques, builds things from wood, or does stained glass. We all know someone who “knew this guy who ….”
I have a friend with a family room in which the stained glass windows were made – for her, specifically – by her husband. Yeah … stained glass … a hobby, really. My daughter-in-law reclaimed a very old dining room table with no home and restored it to its former glory. I took my mother’s hand-crocheted tea cloth and mounted it in a frame, as a wall piece. We’ve all got stories.
Last week, I mentioned a steady reader from Rosemont. She’s got stories, too. She said she could write a book. I say, “You should!” We all should, and could, even if it’s only for the sake of the family we leave behind … and leave our stuff to. Still, most of us won’t write that book, but we can take a photo of each item and label it. I stuck labels under a salt and pepper shaker set from each of my grandmothers, and labeled the cupboard and sideboard, which came from each as well.
Talking about the history of our stuff is good, too – to our friends who visit, to our kids who’ll end up with it, and to any- one from our next generation who is going to wonder about it when they can no longer ask us. Some kids want to hear the stories now. Some kids don’t, and listen anyway. Still, almost all, sooner or later, will find out they do care and want to hear the stories they didn’t want to hear when they were kids.
Of course, anyone who takes the tour will know the stories. Our kids will gain some good information just by tagging along when we give that tour; we must remember to invite them along when we “show the rooms.”
“Oh, that coverlet was made by nuns ….”
This column first appeared in the June 2, 2016 edition of the Bucks County Herald.

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