Good Afternoon, everyone… first, to b.zang - please accept my sincerest condolences on the the loss of your husband. Your have my heartfelt prayer that you find your way through this part of your grieving process as you sort through the memories and keepsakes of a life well-lived with your husband. It cant be an easy task but am wishing you peace and comfort in the process. I am struck that you too are indeed at the same place where the family of THE QUILTER might have found themselves last year. Sharing this part of your journey most certainly broadens my perspective on the matter. A heartfelt THANK YOU to you.
And THANK YOU to everyone else here for your very kind and sincere thoughts regarding THE QUILTER and the memories and mementos left behind that went unclaimed. Your well considered thoughts and responses are truly helping me to fill in the blanks that i might have overlooked in my first reaction to the memories left behind at a thrift shop that were somehow mysteriously found by a childhood friend and then placed in the temporary keeping of a fellow quilter and friend.
Might i have been a little too quick to judge the family who probably found themselves overwhelmed with their loved ones “stuff”? Maybe so. I was overwhelmed myself just seeing the book and the hours and life represented in those pages - over 450 photos. I kept asking myself WHY and couldnt come up with an answer… maybe thats because i am not in their shoes???
I am cognizant that at my age (70 this year) that i may well be of a different generation than the family of THE QUILTER. As such, i may not see things through the same lens as they do. My parents are gone now, and that is not the way i handled the “stuff” they left behind. But everyone is different.
Anyway, thank you ALL for helping me sort this out. I very much appreciate the thoughts you have offered here. Im not sure exactly what i should do with the book right now. But i am wondering that maybe all available avenues for its care may have been exhausted. Maybe i should keep it for a short while and show it to another quilting friend who knew her. Then find some way to let it rest in peace.
I VERY SINCERELY thank you ALL!!!