I’ve been scrapbooking since my oldest daughter was 12 years old. That’s 23 years of scrapbooking. When I first started, I had 13 years’ worth of pictures in plastic shoe boxes.

Before I started scrapbooking, I dabbled in stamping. I made all sorts of beautiful cards, although I sent very few of them out. And other people always made much more beautiful cards than I did. I was a mediocre card maker.

I am pretty mediocre at nearly every craft I have taken up. I have remained at beginner status in several of them. Quilting, crocheting, canning, knitting, fishing, stamping, among others. I am not a good finisher, either. I have many incomplete projects in my closet.

In fact, I am a fairly mediocre scrapbooker, and that’s with the help of pretty papers, stickers, and fancy cutting tools.

Why even start if I am probably never going to reach a high level of proficiency? My efforts pale in comparison to the work of my scrapbooking friends.

A few months ago, I asked an online scrapbooking group: “Why do you scrapbook?”

Some answers:

• I like being creative
• So family stories won’t be forgotten
• It’s an activity to do with my friends and family
• To help my loved ones know I loved them
• I scrapbook so when we have memory battles I can prove I’m right (or wrong)
• So my loved one with dementia can look at them and feel the connection

I sometimes say I scrapbook so that when I’m a little old lady, I’ll remember my life. That is, I’ll remember who I am, maybe.

If you scrapbook, what’s your why?

Cynthia