Thursday, April 29, 2010

Thirty Eight Years Ago

Yesterday afternoon I was working in my attic. That in itself is quite a chore. Everytime I step foot in the door of my attic, it reminds me of the huge job ahead of me...sorting, keeping, getting rid of...you all know what I am talking about. Somehow, it seems easier for me just to close the door and walk out, instead of sorting through it all.
In one box I found some old "Better Homes and Gardens" magazines. The second one on the pile was dated April 1972, causing me to suddenly be caught up in nostalgia. April 1972 for me, meant that in a few short weeks I would be graduating from high school. I can remember those last few weeks like it was yesterday. In some ways, it seems like just yesterday, and in other ways, it seems like it was hundreds of years ago.



I picked up the photo album from that Spring in my life. I saw the graduation pictures that my mother had so lovingly captured. I saw the smile on my face and remembered some of the emotions that went with that smile.
I thought to myself, as I looked at the magazine and the old photo albums, about ALL the many changes that have taken place since then...in the last 38 years...


I flipped through the pages of my newly discovered find. I saw that the "Wonder Bread" of that time, is still the "Wonder Bread" today, although now my personal "wonder bread" is the loaves of bread that my daugther bakes in her oven on a weekly basis. Quite a bit healthier I might add, although there is still room in this world for both kinds.



I smiled as I saw this page. Oh, the fun memories that came to mind as I thought about the" S&H green stamp" time period of my life. The hours of time that I spent helping my mother save and paste them in her books. And the anticipation I felt as I entered the S&H Green Stamp store, along the main route of the nearest town.
Gone are the S&H green stamp days...



Funny thing about this advertisement in the magazine, is that the chenille bedspreads of yesteryear, are now making a comeback in the retro look of our day. Just a few days ago, I was looking through a magazine that featured the "chenille look", although I'm sure it is not the "needlepunch" look of the seventies.
I remember my Grandmas telling me that sometimes they can hardly grasp the amount of changes that had taken place in their lifetimes. For me, on that afternoon moment of reflection in the attic, I could almost express the same sentiments.
Change...it happens, sometimes noticed and sometimes unnoticed. "Change" is what we face on a daily basis, and it feels like just as we get a grasp on the stage of life that we are in, change happens again.
All of it is part and parcel of our lives, and it all makes up what we are today. I am so thankful for the memories, and for the lessons learned(even the extremely difficult ones), for the joys and the heartaches. I am thankful most of all, for the faithfulness of my Heavenly Father through it all.
What were you doing 38 years ago this Spring?




21 comments:

Love Being A Nonny said...

Love the pictures! You are correct. Everything comes back around!!!

Stacey said...

It's so much fun to look back. :) I passed through Sears the other day and it made me remember shopping in The Lemon Frog Shop at Sears. Do you remember that? It was the pre-teen/teen section at the time I was in middle school and high school. It was just the coolest thing to shop there.

Happy@Home said...

Cleaning the attic can be an overwhelming task, but a little break to reminisce sounds like a pleasant way to make the job more enjoyable. You look so cute in your graduation picture. It is hard to believe that 1972 was 38 years ago. Where has the time gone? It seems to be flying by faster and faster. I guess that is just a reminder to enjoy every moment.

Judy said...

While you were graduating...I was newly married. I remember the clothes I wore...the car I drove...and the friends that were getting married in April of 1972. It's fun to walk down memory lane every once in awhile...and realize that though things have changed...God does not change.

Cute grad pic!

Anonymous said...

I love taking trips down memory lane. It's hard for me to clean something like an attic because I wouldn't get past the first box without day dreaming :>) I love your graduation picture! 38 years ago I was busy raising my children. Where has all the time gone?

lindsey said...

What a great time you had...my daughters would love that beadspread. You look beautiful in your graduation photo. Thirty eight years ago? I was 15 and still at school...yes it does seem years ago especially when I consider all the things that have happened in that time. You are right, God's faithfulness is the greatest thing of all.

Thoughts on Life and Millinery. said...

Hey, we both graduated from high school the same year! S&H green stamps were always kept in the kitchen drawer and I remember once I got a lamp for my bedroom with our stamp books.

Hair: long, and parted on the side or in the middle and STRAIGHT. Pants were "hip huggers" and flared.

Miss Debbie said...

In May of 1972,I was finishing my first year of college and on the verge of meeting my future husband! A friend of mine said the thing that makes her feel old is finding something in an antique shop that either her mom had or she had as a newly-wed!:-) Funny thing about some of the retro stuff is that I didn't like it 40 years ago and I still don't like it! ha! ha! I am thankful everyday that God never changes and that His mercies are new every morning.... that strengthens us to handle the change. Happy to discover your blog!

corners of my life said...

What a lovley stroll down memory lane - all so familiar . . .

Melinda said...

I was 9 yrs old and who knows what
I was up to.
Time does fly. I don't think I could have imagined being 47 yrs old back then! Sometimes it's even hard NOW.

Happy Friday.

Melinda

Kathleen said...

Chenille? Did I see chenille? My bedspread was chenille, as was my mother's robe - which also represented all things safe & nurturing.

I was only 6 years ahead of you, having graduated H.S. in 1966. They were such innocent, fun & memorable years; years just ahead of the mayhem brought on with the Viet Nam war.

I'm sure glad I don't have to sleep in those awful "bobble" curlers anymore, though.

Blessings,
Kathleen

myrtlebeachweddings said...

Just a quick hello and to let you know I think of you often!

Hugs,
Elizabeth

Sherry said...

38 years ago I was also planning to graduate from high-school. I was married that following summer and our first bedspread was white chenille, I loved it then and I still love chenille. Thanks for sharing. I will have to look for the old magazines I saved from the 70's. I have just a few.

Pat @ Mille Fiori Favoriti said...

Such wonderful memories, Judy! In 1972 I had just begun nursing school. I did not yet know my husband. It seems so long ago but so many wonderful things ahve happened to be thankful for!

Landis said...

Wow, 50 cents! BH&G needs to bring that price back. :) I love when you post pictures of your childhood/teen years. You and your middle daughter look so much alike!

Barb said...

Judy, this was so much fun to read. My, how times have changed! That bedspread is tooooooo much. Ha.

Barb ♥

Crickit said...

I remember all of those things... I love the nostalgia of it all. It was great taking a walk with you down "your" memory lane.

LisaShaw said...

This is such a precious message and I love your photo. It's always interesting to look back over your life.

I'm a very reflecting person so I do it often. Sad to say that 38 years ago this Spring I was 6 years old and about a year into what would become years of pain in my childhood.

However, on a HAPPY note I was also 6 years old and enjoying moments with my Grandparents that I still treasurer. I only wish I had been allowed to remain with them permanently and not just weekends and occasional visits. I can remember at 6years old eating peaches and ice cream with my Grandpa and that continued well into my teens.

I love you dear friend and appreciate you.

Kirsten said...

38 years ago I was giving my mom all manner of grief with late pregnancy heartburn and the usual trouble getting around...(I was born in June of 72). Love the pictures--you look beautiful and so happy!

Tracy said...

Love the photos and memories...wow, those ads! Love your graduation photo. I'm amazed how little you've changed!

Spring of 1972 found me finishing up first grade. I remember that our neighborhood school bus transported those of us attending elementary school, as well as a small number of high school kids. I was completely fascinated by them...their hairstyles, their clothing and even the songs they would sing amongst themselves sometimes. Very vivid memories! Thanks for sharing the trip down memory lane! = )

Brenda @ Its A Beautiful Life said...

38 years ago this Spring, you ask? Mmmmm.... I'd have to think about it.

Those old catalogues -- what fun to go through all these years later. My little sis and I used to cut the old catalogues for paper dolls. Oh and the fun we used to have dreaming up wardrobes and fancy houses.

38 years ago....1972... Aha, I know! That's the year I gave my heart to Jesus and He's been taking care of it ever since.

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