Voyages 27 Nov 2005 12:17 pm
Distant Connections
It’s a very odd feeling when acquiring other peoples possessions “legally” and going through the boxes unwrapping each piece to reveal things I have never seen before, and then coming across something that I remember seeing when it belonged to someone else and realize it is mine now. I feel a strange sense of responsibility.
For those who are not familiar with recent events that lead to this post, I inherited my aunts estate and moved most of the contents of her home from Arizona up into a storage unit near my home.
I brought a few of the items and boxes to my home to go through. Three boxes were marked “china and crystal.” I wanted those boxes because my brother requested he get some holiday china and crystal that my Grandma had. So as I went through the boxes looking for that, I came across all kinds of stuff I didn’t expect to see. Let me explain that, while I had a general idea of what was in the buffet and hutches in her dining room, I didn’t go through it all. I didn’t have time too and just let the packers from North American Van Lines pack it and I would go through it later.
As I searched through the boxes and unwrapped each “wad” of paper to unveil what was deep in the bundle, searching for my brothers items, I would come across crystal, silver or china pieces that seemed to have a, for lack of a better word, “signature.” In other words, I seemed to sense that some items belonged to my Grandma, some to my Aunt, but some seemed to belong to someone else, like my Great Grandparents that got handed down to my Grandma for example.
There is no indication that any of these pieces have been evaluated for historic or actual value. Nor do I know for sure the age or origin of any of it. I have no real working knowledge of antiques in general, and don’t know the significance of any of these things and I am left to guess at this time.
Here is were the sense of “responsibility” comes into play.
I know when my Grandma and Grandpa were born, and when they got married. I tend to think that what I find is all Grandma’s, but it is possible that some of it might be from Grandpa’s side of the family. I just don’t know that one for sure. But if I can determine the age of some of this, that would help establish were it might have come from, ie..Germany as in my Grandma’s case. She came from there at the age of 4 years old. That could establish the value to the family and should be passed on to later generations. The “distant connection” thing.
The next step would be to establish and actual value dollarwise. Just to know its general worth if it were to be sold out of curiosity.
It’s just strange to me. Most of my life so far, I have acquired things by way of my choosing and purchasing because I liked it and wanted it. Some of it I would like to pass on to my kids as part of my “legacy.” Now I find myself responsible for passing on a legacy in items acquired by family before me. And not just pass on to my kids, but to other family members as well.
This “stuff” might be mine for now but it is only temporary. It is only in my care for now.
Those who have gone before me expect me to do what is right. Now I have to decide what that is.
If I was a “selfish bastard” I would sell what I didn’t want to keep and not give anything to anyone. But I am who I am, and I wouldn’t feel right doing that. The odds of this stuff coming into my possession are astronomical. There was a time it was more likely I would have won the PowerBall jackpot. So there must be a reason and I must honor that and my ancestors…whoever that might be.
What an interesting “Voyage” this is…