ephemera /ĭ-fĕm′ər-ə/
by chuckofish
I was going through some boxes yesterday and I found this photo taken in 1927 (nearly 100 years ago!) of my mother and her older sister and it reminded me so much of daughter #2’s two girls. I mean really. I hope their Mom gets their portrait taken together so that 100 years from now someone can find it and put it in a frame.
I also found letters my brother wrote to us in the fall of his freshman year in college (1969)–“Don’t worry I’m not turning into a hippie.” (Um, oh yes you were.) I am sending those letters to him so he can share them with his children.
I found clippings from 19th century newspapers and magazines, cut out by ancestors to keep.

I will keep those along with various ancient Valentines…

(Recognize the Peanuts gang from 1967?)
I found a lot of stuff from my Mother’s years at Middlebury College, including the bills. It cost about $500 a semester in 1946-47. Also lots of letters, sometimes with illustrations:
Quite a treasure trove…and I admit I threw away very little. The best I can do is get it all a little better organized/labeled for my children.
Don’t judge me!
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I love the sister pic so much ❤️ and as someone who has lived in a house for 2 years and already organized my basement bins several times, I get it… thank you for preserving the “archive”!
Ditto, Susie! I think the phrase “preserving the archive” is perfect!!
Your cursive was so good! 😊
Well, that was an envelope from someone else–Peggy Daniel maybe?
You have inspired me to go look through a couple of boxes! (My day did not start well. Note to self: do not answer email when you have a migraine.) Preserving my own family archive may raise my spirits. Your blog post has!