Chaos of Memories

Every passion borders on the chaotic, but the collector’s passion borders on the chaos of memories.    Walter Benjamin

I read posts about minimalism, and I admire those who practice it.  Not me.  I like things.  I like making things, and I like collecting things, especially when they have a story.

I brought this glass home from Venezuela, purchased on a day-trip from an Aruba vacation in 1990.  After a quick flight, we risked our lives on a terrifying bus ride, brave tourists transported to a factory in the mountains where Murano-style glass was (is?) made in the Venetian style, under the direction of a Venetian immigrant.  The glass was one of four, and the only one still intact.  One was broken and two are cracked, but I keep them anyway and will happily drink wine from them, ignoring the danger and continuing the adventure.

I don’t know who made this glass, but I do know who gave it to me.  My friend Polly noticed my collection of carnival glass tumblers and added several, including this one which immediately became my favorite.  The design around the rim is called fruit of plenty, and I like to drink cold tea from it when I am home alone.

This small bowl probably came from an estate sale years ago, or maybe from one of the local antique shops.  I have three, and I fill them with salt for dinner parties, usually with a small wooden spoon but sometimes I just let people use their fingers.  I love dinner parties.  Sometimes it’s nice to go out and be waited on, but there’s something special about dinners with friends at home.

Every week during the season we pick up our CSA share.  Our farmers grow the vegetables, but most of the fruit is from other local farms.  This week we got peaches, and I bought nectarines from the store.  This jam is a mixture of the two fruits, infused with just a bit of lemon verbena.  I’ve shared one jar with Polly, and I’ll take some when I visit my daughter in Chicago later this month.  Sometime this winter, when it’s cold and snowy, the jars we keep will help us to remember summer.