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LEARN HOW TO MAKE OUR TYPE LARGER

Hope Chests
Published May/June 2002

By Iris Ruth Pastor

The idea comes slowly - in rather a convoluted way. It starts with the birth of my sister's first daughter 14 years ago, when I tried in vain to find a gift worthy of her arrival. And I settled for a stroller.

It grew the day I attended a wedding shower and witnessed the bride's mother presenting her daughter with recipes, letters and pictures from a grandmother long deceased. That thoughtful gesture outshone all the silver place settings in the party room that afternoon.

The next evolution comes many years later when I visit my son Frank's space-challenged apartment in New York City. I am surprised to see on his bookshelf a large picture of Leah and Sam Friedman - his great, great grandparents. Not only had he never met them, but I don't recall telling him much about them either.

"So why the picture?" I ask. His inability to fully explain their presence crystallizes my idea. Soon my disjointed thoughts blossom into a full plan.

Upon returning home, I rush upstairs and head for my bedroom. Perched under my window is an eighty year-old, hand carved chest bequeathed to me two decades ago. It is presently filled with out-of-season clothes, old electric hair rollers, and purses that I am hoping will someday be in style again. In a manic frenzy, I empty its contents and stare excitedly into its blank space - the raw possibilities of this chest blaze through my consciousness.

A noted philosopher once said, "Memory is the cabinet of the imagination, the treasury of reason, the registry of conscience, and the council chamber of thought."

The idea bursts forth: I will fill this chest with memories for my granddaughter. It will become her Hope Chest.

This chest will serve as a conduit for passing on the importance of family cohesiveness and continuity, especially in light of the fact that so many parents and their adult children are no longer living in close proximity. Grandchildren are no longer surrounded by hordes of adoring relatives - aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents - naturally absorbing their essences and personal history.

I want my children to love and preserve the traditions and beliefs of my parents and grandparents and I want to make it as easy as possible for them to do so.

Hope Chests, roughly translating into places to store hopes for the future, date back as far into history as furniture does. Early tribal humans, upon marrying their daughters into another tribe, would offer gifts they had gathered and made and hand carry them in baskets - a precursor of the less mobile Hope Chest.

Traditionally, Hope Chests were started when girls were in their teenage years - the years when they began to think of their futures. The Hope Chest became a symbol of both multigenerational faithfulness and optimism and confidence that the recipient would have a bright future.

My idea is to start my granddaughter out with a Hope Chest the day she is born and fill it periodically with keepsakes and treasures - items that will bring my granddaughter closer to her family, her ancestors, her roots, traditions, rituals, and values.

My aim is to give to my granddaughter a sense of continuity between generations so the Leah and Sam Friedmans in her life will have a vivid history, not a shadowy past ... and always a prominent place on her bookshelf.

For the past 14 years, Iris Pastor has written a weekly column entitled "Slice of Life" targeted at the over 50 bunch. Her column is featured in various newspapers. She is the author of the book, "Slices, Bites and Other Facts of Life," as well as a motivational speaker for businesses and professional organizations. To share comments, order a copy of her book, or to find out about future workshops e-mail Iris at iris@cinci.rr.com

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