A beloved grandfather’s watch, the last remaining memento of a man whose life was cut short by World War II. A child’s complete set of baby teeth, kept safe by the “tooth fairy” in a tiny knit basket. An inexpensive gold trinket, the gift from a father to his ten-year-old daughter before he disappeared from her life forever. A 78-rpm recording of a villager, now in his 90s, when he was a lad of 19. A letter to the midwife helping in the delivery of the second child of a woman frightened by the complications surrounding the delivery of her first.

Ordinary objects made precious by the memories attached to them.

The poignant stories and native creativity of Northwest Neighbors “Village People” were on full display recently in the meeting room of the Chevy Chase Public Library, where members gathered to create Legacy Boxes. A Legacy Box uses objects of personal importance accumulated over a lifetime to describe how our lives were touched by relationships and circumstances that molded us forever.

Over the course of four weeks, neighbors painted and personalized wooden boxes, filled them with mementoes and artifacts accumulated over many decades of living, and shared stories of their meaning and relevance.  We all have such mementoes accumulating in
junk drawers, the top shelves of closets, and the dusty corners of attics. Legacy Boxes provide a perfect place to preserve the most prized of these artifacts, so they can be remembered, and savored, and shared with future generations.

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Creating Legacy Boxes was the first group experience in David Oldfield’s Four Seasons of Creativity for Elders series. The spring offering, “Drawing the Map of Your Life,” begins on Friday, March 22nd. Information about signing up for that will come out next week. We hope you’ll consider enrolling and embarking with your neighbors on this creative journey!