Read the full article by Angie Eng at RAM’s New Times Magazine
“It’s not worth saving,” I told my parents as I helped them clean out their garage full of objects from the past 60 years.
I played tug of war with them, trying to convince them to throw away 40 years’ worth of bank calendars, a children’s wooden desk, bowling trophies from 1968 and my dad’s first computer. My father would exclaim in excitement, “Look, aren’t you glad I saved this!” as he pulled out a picture made from macaroni and dried beans glued to paper that I made in kindergarten at Charles Mack Elementary School in Sacramento.
To you, your parents’ stuff in the garage might be better off at Goodwill or in a recycling bin. But to them, these objects might hold their life stories — memories, accomplishments, milestones and chapters of their lives.