#Week In the Life

One of my favorite scrapbooking designers, Ali Edwards, does a project each year called Week In The Life. It's a seven day documentation of your life. It's such a wonderful way to capture a vignette of now. It's astonishing to realize all the stuff that goes into a normal day in anyone's life.  What is especially interesting is having documented several years now and being able to go back and look at what was, and what has changed - both for the good and the bad - and what is happening right now, in REAL life. It's not about taking pictures of just the "good" stuff, it's about documenting the reality of your life.

I lost my dad in 2009, and I think all the time that I wish that I had a better "picture" of what his life was like on a day to day basis. Even though I spent parts of those days with him, I was a child, and he was an adult with all the responsibilities and stresses and joys that go with that.  I know facts, like he fished and hunted to help feed his family, he worked for the U.S. Forest Service, was a Reserve Deputy for the Bonneville County Sheriff's office in Idaho, was married to my mom, had 5 kids, etc.  But I don't really know what his routines were, who his co-workers were (or at least not many of them), what comprised his day, etc.  My mom has Alzheimers now, and the same applies for her. Especially since my mom is a hoarder. Yes, just like you can see on the tv show Hoarders. That was a difficult thing for me to deal with as a young adult and even now when I'm a grandmother. It hurts to think that my mom has a mental illness (besides the Alzheimers), and we didn't know that was what it was, and couldn't help her. Of course, she would not admit there was anything wrong with her (still won't) or that she needed help.

Bottom line is that I want my grandchildren and great grandchildren to have a better idea of my life than I had/have of my parents and even my grandparents. Random pictures are wonderful, but can never tell the story by themselves.

So, here we go for another year of documenting. I love the process, I'm grateful for the spotlight it puts on things in my life that I want to change, and how it makes me really think about things that it's easier to ignore. I'm currently on a journey of learning and growth and change, and I want to remember it all. The struggles, the joys, the frustrations, the blessings, etc.

Here's to a great week!