First prize...

We did some last minute shopping today at the outlet mall for a couple new suitcases – we needed some new ones before our trip. I’ve been lugging around a beat up black bag with two broken zippers – the only way to close it is to grab a hold of the luggage lock and slide it around. The front pocket is completely useless, because the zipper was ripped right off by some overzealous baggage handlers a few years ago. I’ve been making sure to buckle the whole thing up with a canvas strap every time I use it, but I’m always waiting for it tumble down onto the baggage claim conveyor belt and burst open…

We also wanted to get TWO medium-sized suitcases. We used to have only one medium-sized suitcase, plus two small ones and two giant ones. Which meant for long trips, I’d usually have to haul out one of the giant bags, inevitably resulting in an unwieldy 70-pound suitcase. They’d have to attach one of those “heavy” stickers to it to warn the baggage handlers. So instead of taking one huge bag, I thought perhaps if we had two medium-sized bags it would be easier. And since the only medium-sized bag we had was the aforementioned beat-up zipper-deficient piece of luggage lunacy, we decided to just buy two new medium bags. Makes sense, right?

It’s funny how many things we humans buy and acquire… luggage, furniture, cars, books, clothes… little knickknacks and picture frames and stuffed animals… all kinds of things that fill up cupboards and spill out of drawers and line shelves… I don’t ever even realize how much STUFF I have until I move somewhere. When you have to pack up all that stuff and actually transport it, it suddenly becomes exhaustingly clear how much of it you own…

And out of all of those possessions, which ones are the PRIZE possessions? I mean, if I have all these things that require such attention when I’m moving from one house to another, is there anything that stands out as an extra-special item? Is there anything that I wrap up more carefully than the other items? Anything I would consider irreplaceable? Something I would drape in a few extra layers of bubble wrap, just to be certain it arrived at my destination unscathed?

What’s surprising is that my own answers to those questions reveal that my “prize possessions” really aren’t the kinds of things anyone else would be interested in. Musty old books from my grandparents’ house… a little vial of pink Bermudan sand I keep on a shelf in the foyer… the black binder on my bookshelf that is full of things I’ve written over the years – some of which I’ve never made copies of (I need to make copies, don’t I? )… the carved wooden cat on my fireplace hearth that Aimee gave me as a housewarming gift when I moved into this house. And of course there are the pictures – everyone says that if their house were burning down, they would want to rescue their pictures (assuming all family and pets were accounted for). And I'm certainly no different.

In fact, the more I think about it, the more I think that our prize possessions should rarely be worth much in monetary value. Instead, they’re worth very much in emotional value – they represent our memories and our happiness and our struggles and our accomplishments. I’m sure Eric would tell you that one of HIS prize possessions is Chester the Ratty Old Stuffed Dog. I can’t imagine anyone else would understand Chester’s appeal. You wouldn’t even be able to sell Chester on eBay… and you can sell just about ANYTHING on eBay. But, as I’m certain Eric would tell you, Chester is one-of-a-kind… (and hey, he doesn’t look THAT bad for a thirty-year-old stuffed dog… ) Is he worth money? Absolutely not. But is he worth SOMETHING? Absolutely.

I could probably fit all of my “prize possessions” inside one of my brand new medium-sized suitcases. And let’s hope THIS time the zippers never break…