It is nice to look back and think that I had lived, travelled, and done things. I am not just me right now, I am all of me in the past, now, and in the future. Living in the moment is great, but not being able to learn and remember wouldn't make it better, quite the opposite - previous actions and experiences had brought me here and made me who I am.
Travelling is one of the best things we can do. Modern technology is great, but going through my random scribbles, saved pieces of papers, tickets, and trinkets is much better. The same goes for printing photos. Yes, a phone can store many more images, but if you want to have a good look, nothing beats a printed image. Besides, picking up the really good one to keep is a good thing. Having ten images of the same thing on the phone puts you off looking through the rest. And it is easier to remember where the things are than knowing which device, folder, cloud account, or back up disc the thing you want to see is.
Sometimes, I despair of the amount of things I own. Often, I do a purge and a few days later realize that I need that very thing that I deemed disposable not long ago. Therefore, I am careful about sentimental thins. If I throw away knitting needles, I can replace them. But nothing will replace a little figurine of Hello Kitty that had found me during my wondering in Tokyo. Things that I keep might not be valuable, but they make me happy. Because they bring back memories. And memories transform ideas into stories. Write what you know...
