I, Angie Lucas, hereby present the easiest journaling strategy ever imagined by woman:
Have someone else write it!
Last Fall, I organized a two-volume tribute album for my Grandpa Bill to present to him on his 80th birthday. And I only had to come up with enough words to fill a single, 4 x 6 card! I outsourced the rest of the writing to my multitudinous relatives. Some of you may remember the album from pages 42-43 of Quick & Easy Photo Albums.
Here's the Story
I was in charge of a craft
project at our summer family reunion. So I brought a coordinated
product line and a bunch of supplies, and I put my relatives (ages 11
to 55) to work. We assembled 85 journaling cards, assembly-line
fashion, right in front of Grandpa, in less than 2 hours. Why 85? This
particular octogenarian has four daughters, four sons-in-law, 17
grandchildren (most of them married), and 37 great-grandchildren. When
we started creating, we told him it was just a random "scrapbook
project," which is about all you have to say to most males to send them
sailing for the door. It didn't matter anyway, as he spent most of the
time kicking everyone's butt at horseshoes. He wasn't even suspicious.
Aunts Can Be Wonderful Assets
Then, each of my aunts took enough cards home to distribute to their families, instructing everyone (even the kids) to write a memory of Grandpa, a note of thanks, or a list of admirable traits. I followed up with everyone by email, asking them to mail the cards to me with accompanying photos. They could choose a favorite picture of Grandpa, a self-portrait, or a shot of the two of them together. I gave them a strict deadline, and most complied.
Absolutely No Pressure Allowed
This part is important. In my follow-up email, I reminded everyone that the purpose of this album is to present a wide collection of memories, impressions, and thoughts. They don't have to fit the whole of their experience with Grandpa into 4 x 6 inches. And this doesn't have to be their biggest, best, most transcendent memory of all time. Their only job is to contribute a piece to the collective experience, to simply write enough to fill the space.
Did He Like It?
Grandma says she finds him looking through it all the time. And he can't talk about it without his beautiful blue eyes getting teary. (I'm not just saying this. He has the best eyes in the whole wide world.)
And Then
Grandma turned 80 six months later. Tune in Thursday to see the album we assembled for her!
OH OH OH!!!!!!!! I am soooooo doing this for my gpa!!! THANKS FOR THE STEP BY STEP!! :) I am looooooooving your blog!!
Posted by: Kim | March 19, 2009 at 05:38 AM
What a precious gift! I just love the idea. Thanks for sharing.
Posted by: Kim K. | March 19, 2009 at 06:02 AM
What a wonderful, wonderful gift! I would LOVE to do a project like this for my mom and dad! Definately going to give it a try! Thanks so much for the inspiration!
Posted by: kyla | March 19, 2009 at 06:59 AM
You are brilliant sassy pants.
Posted by: Jori | March 19, 2009 at 07:19 AM
This is such a great idea. I always make my grandmother some kind of scrap album for Christmas and am running out of unique ideas. I am so going to do this! Thanks for sharing.
Posted by: Laura H. | March 19, 2009 at 08:21 AM
So cute! I love this idea! And how did I miss this special issue?
Posted by: Katie Scott | March 19, 2009 at 08:24 AM
You are sweet, Angie! And really, this is what it's all about! Beth and I did a similar thing for my parents' 50th wedding anniversary, and my dad just couldn't get enough of it!
Posted by: Susan Opel | March 19, 2009 at 08:29 AM
That is so beautiful! Thanks for sharing!
Posted by: Nicky Hurt | March 19, 2009 at 09:12 AM
he does have really nice eyes. what a great treat.
Posted by: emily pitts | March 19, 2009 at 09:13 AM
Thanks for sharing this. I am lucky that I have this special issue and can go back and look at it.
Speaking of special issues, I picked up a copy of the Scrapbook Play with Photos special issue today at Kroger when I was getting milk. I am totally sad that this is the last Simple Scrapbooks special issue. I have to say that in my humble opinion, SS produced the best books and special issues on the market. I love how they were organized and focused. Many of the other books and special issues just seemed to be thrown together without much purpose or thought. Not so with Simple.
Anyway, I really like your mini album "Say Cheese" with the arms length group photos. We do that in our family too, so I'm totally taking your lead and making a mini album.
Loving your blog, by the way!!!
Posted by: Jennifer McGuire (not the CK one) | March 19, 2009 at 12:12 PM
Such a neat idea. I know it has to be treasured. So neat.
Posted by: Deb | March 19, 2009 at 01:14 PM
I would love a copy of this mag. I made a similar album for my 10 year anniversary and would like new ideas. I have not found it in South Africa yet, I will still be looking out for it, love your idea of everyone contributing!
Posted by: Kota Venter | June 05, 2009 at 05:59 AM