Artifacts

Most Treasured Possession: The one item that I can think of that would have to be my most treasured possession would have to be my four-foot stuffed duck that was given to me for Easter one year from my mother. It’s a bright yellow-color with a large bill. The mane is a bit matted from years of use but it still makes me happy all the same. We all have those days where we’re either just so angry that we want to scream at the top of our lungs to see who’ll listen, or those days where the world seems completely against you and you can’t help but to have an emotional breakdown. With the big heaving sobs and the never-ending tears. The stuffed animal doesn’t judge based on any of your emotional issues, nor does it tell anyone about it. It’s probably one of the main things you can actually trust in the world without worry about betrayal or judgment. Not to mention it wasn't there to tell you that you're wrong. You could rant to it about any person who're just too dumb and simple minded to believe the truth. And some people wonder why others have issues being social...

Memories: I suppose the best example from this would be my large bag of Mardi Gras beads. I could remember all the times we would travel down to New Orleans just to go watch the floats and have candy and cups thrown at us. We never went to the night one, for obvious reasons, but the day time was the best. There were screaming children as they tried to catch flying pieces of candy. The days were always hot and baring down on us with the sun. Most tended to bring folding chairs as well as some water. At times it was unbearable, especially for the adults who weren’t as obsessed with it as us children, but for us children, it was one of the most amazing days of the year. Afterwards, we would be able to go home and eat King Cake. Three different colors and a baby inside that we have to find to determine who bought the king cake the next year. I always tried to keep the babies.

Boundaries

House: This place was always easy to remember in my mind since it was the last house in Mississippi that we lived in before moving to Michigan. It was a pretty fancy trailer that had glass tables inside. There were 3 main bedrooms, one for my parents, one for me, and one for my brother Heath. There was a study type room that my brother Tim, deemed as his for he was the one with the computer at the time. White wooden doors blocked his room from intruders with clear glass for windows and some white drapes so people couldn’t look inside. The outside yard was filled with bright and luscious green grass and in the back yard it led to a wheat field and a small patch of woods. My doghouse for my collie skipper was planted firmly on the left hand side. This house was at the end of the driveway, which means not many people came back there unless it was specifically to visit us. It wasn’t like there was a turn around point if someone was lost or anything. Just a random little trailer in the middle of the countryside with a family living there. Nothing special to anyone else but my family and me.

Neighborhoods: A main neighborhood that I used to live at which comes to mind is when I lived down in Fowlerville, Michigan. We lived in these tall brick apartments that had three floors. We were on the middle so it was nice. Across the street from us was this rinky-dink little shop but had some amazingly soft peanut butter cookies. If you were to take a left out of our driveway, it would take you to the main district part. Up there were restaurants such as McDonalds, they also had a couple hotels as well as some apartments. If you were to take a right however, you would first come across a railroad crossing, afterwards you would stumble upon the older district. There were just random and old shops that littered down the road. There was a video/game store that appeared first, then you’d find some antique stores as well as just nifty little shops that you weren’t even aware existed. They had a medium sized grocery store over to the left that was everyone’s main shopping place. If you kept on the right hand side of the road however, you’d come across a few streets with rows of stores. There was a small pharmacy, the library, and there was this bar that we used to joke about. It was called the “Bloated Goat”. I went there once with my mother and father, they made pretty good chilidogs. However, it’s slightly awkward to be eating when you have some big biker guys staring at you from across the room. It was a great place though, and I couldn’t possibly regret living there those two years that I did.

SNAPSHOTS

Most Treasured: To me personally, the quality of the picture isn't the same as who or what is inside. Such is the picture that I have with my mother's side of the family. My mother's side would have to be one of my favorite and most supportive side of my family because they actually care about mine and my family's well-being and happiness, not to mention they contact us all the time to see how we're doing. In the picture there was my aunt, my three uncles, all of their spouses, my few cousins, and my three second cousins. It was exciting because I got this picture this past summer when I was given the opportunity to travel back and forth between Minnesota and Wisconsin for a family reunion that happens once ever few years. Therer was work, there was laughter, there was teary good-byes, but in the end it was worth it. We stopped at an all-you-can-eat buffett for breakfast before leaving. There were many hugs that followed and this picture for a keepsake. Even though we're spread out in four different states, they will always hold a special place in my heart. As the saying goes "Absence makes the heart grow fonder."


Happiness, loss; & A change in my life: I remember the day that this photograph was taken. A warm Mississippi sun, our beat up, old-school, dirty white car, my hyperactive collie Skipper, A long lost brother who still remembered that we existed, a sister who used to smile and loveback in those days, and another brother who towered over the rest of us including our parents. I was busy bobbing my bright blonde pig-tails while cooing to skipper to really pay much attention about the picture. I remember that my brother Tim was in green sweatpants after lazing about once football practice was over for the day. Heath had a smile on his face with his freckles popping out in contrast against his bright red skin. Katie looked a bit distracted but that was probably because she wasn't used to being this close with the family. For me personally, I had a bright smile on my face because I was with my family however my eyes were finally rested upon Skipper. Who would've known that our happy and close family would go their separate ways without a proper good-bye or phonecalls to make up for the time and distance apart? I suppose the past can be forgiven but it will never be forgotten, at least not with me.