Family, Childhood Memories, and Ugly Wall Decor

My Mom and Dad are in town! And while Dad has been doing this....

I put Mom to work doing this....

Mom has lots of experience pulling weeds....and I have lots of weeds!

Here's an interesting tidbit for you.....
As far back as I can remember, and all during my childhood at home, my folks had a huge fork and spoon hanging on the wall for decoration.....

We kids thought they were horrendously ugly and loved to make fun of them. I guess they were all the rage during the 60's and 70's. They disappeared after I left home and I don't know whatever happened to them. "Good riddance", I thought.

Then, recently, I found these gems at a garage sale....

At first I made fun of them by posting a photo and sarcastic comment on instagram. But, then I thought they would make a perfect gag gift and decided to purchase them and wait for the perfect moment to hang them on Mom and Dad's wall in their house, so I bought them and put them in corner of my sunroom and waited.....all the while looking at them, and then something strange happened....I started to like them. I started to like them so much that I decided to keep them! And I then I planted them in my garden.

 I mean, how perfect is that? A fork and a spoon in a u-pick garden....like, "Eat your vegetables!"
Now I'm starting to LOVE these crazy things!

Childhood memories are powerful things, and they center around the weirdest things, and common things too....good and bad. A funny thing happened about 10 years ago....I used to have some regular sized kitchen silverware that had gawdy, clunky, orange handles. I loved those things. I had saved money when I was still living at home and bought them, a piece at a time, and just loved setting up house with them when I got married. Unfortunately, once I had kids they thought they were atrocious. There was enough mocking over the years that I put them away and started using a different set. Eventually I decided to get rid of them all together and offered them to the one person I knew who off-handedly once told me that she liked them. Well.........when Levi found out I had given them away he was SO UPSET!!!! I was shocked at his reaction! I said, "Well, Levi, you all thought they were so ugly that I decided to get rid of them. Why would you want me to keep them?"  And he said the most profound thing..... I will never forget it....he said, "But Mom, they were part of my childhood memories! Childhood memories are made from the ugly things too!"

Wow. I had never thought of it that way, but he is totally right. All those ugly things your folks hung in their house when you were young, and all those toys and clothes you outgrew....don't you wish you had them back?  I know I do.