Most of us are familiar with journaling in our scrapbooks. These are short little quips that describe what is happening in a photograph. It is fun to fill scrapbook pages with these, as it makes the scrapbook become more personable.
What about storytelling through scrapbooks? Storytelling would be a more detailed account of something. Try to imagine how one day that story could really mean a lot to someone.
In fact, just think how you would feel if you had scrapbooks that your mother created that is filled with story after story. Wouldn’t you just treasure them? If your mother was no longer around you would feel like you still have a piece of her.
That is what storytelling through scrapbooks can do. One day when you are gone, your story will still go on. The pictures are great, of course, but there is something extra special about hearing the words from a loved one.
Let me give you an example. About three years ago my family drove from our hometown of Milwaukee, Wisconsin to Niagara Falls. We actually spent one night in Niagara Falls, New York and the rest of our vacation on the other side in Canada.
One of our excursions was a boat ride that takes you very close to the falls. It was an absolutely amazing and breathtaking experience.
In one of the pictures in the scrapbook from that trip are my husband and youngest son. My youngest son looks miserable. It wasn’t because he wasn’t enjoying the boat ride or that he was sick. He had just been separated from us at the time the picture was snapped. I could have easily journaled a caption underneath the picture that said something like, “Sad because he had been separated from us.”
While that is certainly interesting, it really doesn’t tell the story. Here is the story: “Just as we were embarking on the boat, a crowd of people were directed one way and another crowd was directed another way. Miscommunication between my husband and I resulted in our family being on the lower deck of our boat and our youngest son ending up on the upper deck. Someone found him crying and within five minutes he was returned to us, hearts still pounding. He was so upset about the experience that for the remainder of the day he wouldn’t let go of my hand. Suddenly he didn’t care about looking cool; he was going to hold his mom’s hand no matter what.”
That is a story my son will one day read and probably relive in his mind. Do you see the difference? So my challenge is for you to take your journaling one step further and begin to tell a story. These stories will be treasured for years to come.
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