I’m doing something that’s tedious and time-consuming this week: I’m compiling photos from 2012-2013 to make our family story book. Keep reading. I will justify this time spent.
Every two years, I make a photo album on shutterfly.com. Essentially, I tell our family story for those years. I choose a theme or a word to frame this story, too.
It takes a lot of time, but I remember this: My wise counselor told me that part of mental health is the ability to tell an integrated life story about yourself.
He talked about the importance of telling the story of one’s family history. He challenged me to find treasured family memories from my own childhood and now, as a mother, to pass on the gift to my children of the story of their lives.
This is essential. This is critical. I had no idea.
(Photo album design seemed to me the work of crafty mothers who gathered for scrapbooking parties. I’ve never been to one of these parties, and I wasn’t about to start going! Thank you, Lord, for websites that do the creative work for you!)
Yes, my counselor told me that family photo albums are part of mental health and the well-being of my children. People research this kind of stuff. Family story telling matters deeply. Deeply.
Photo albums for mental health! Imagine!
I sit down and sift through all the photos. It takes me an hour to get through April. I make pages and pages of photos, and guess which story I tell?
I tell the story of God’s faithfulness. I tell the story of perseverance, of God’s sovereignty, of God’s provision, and of love.
I tell the story of love.
Page after page, I record the truth for them for years to come.