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Friday, June 10, 2016

Garage Sale - Funding Te Araroa

The Daniels blood runs deep within me. Sharing these next few thoughts may seem a little imprudent, but I promise it will become clear. I can't count the number of times my Mom has commented on my Grandmother's incapacity to part ways with simple trinkets, doodads, and thingamajigs. I have many childhood memories of rummaging through the shelves and stacks of what I considered  junk in the attic, garage or barn at the Daniels estate south and west of Redfield, Ks. Most of the trinkets didn't even catch my eye. I was on the lookout for the ultimate prize. During my childhood years, that prize was usually something that contained the ability to entice a finned, gill laden creature to bite and fight for its life as I joyfully tugged it to shore. I didn't know it at the time, but I was rifling through a whole family's history. A history full of cattle, coons and the military. Lives woven together by pet skunks, canned peaches, and old farm trucks. To say I didn't know the half of it is a grossly underestimated assumption. I slid open the old barn door to see piles of this, that and the other. My Grandma slides the doors open to a completely different scene. I am reaffirmed to this by the struggle my Mom and Aunts had in convincing my Grandma to sell a significant portion of these memories during a garage sale years ago. One day I will have piles of what someone will consider junk and I will likely grasp as tightly as my Grandma once did. 

Now is not the time for grasping, however. To quote one of my favorite songs "I'm too young for the past tense." I have a plane fare to pay! I have gear to buy, preparations to make, and money to save. I turn to my own pile of "junk" for the deficit. All in all, I need about $6000 dollars for the trip. $6000 dollars of penny penching, ketchup packet saving, coupon scanning and strategic living. As I proceeded to quantify, appraise, and list items for sale such as guns, bows, meat grinders, cameras, and ski boots I was quickly thrust into the shoes of my Grandma standing on the outside of her garage reminiscing over seemingly meaningless possessions. I regrettably assigned reasonable values to items that had stories to tell about nearly every corner of my life during the last 10 years. Nearly all have sold. Thus, I want to use this post as a gravestone and memorial for some of the more meaningful items and share a couple of thoughts this exercise brought to the surface.  

Stoeger Model 2000 12 gauge Shotgun - $300
Turkeys, quail, pheasants, prairie-chickens, Canada geese, ducks, doves, squirrels, and clay pigeons litter the life of this firearm. I bought the gun from a small gun shop in Emporia, KS when I was 14 (I think) with my younger brother, Colin, and my Dad. It was my first 12 gauge shotgun and has proved to be my most memory soaked item. I can't even begin to write about all the joy this shotgun has experienced in my life, but I want to share a few sentences nonetheless. Seriously, I keep starting sentences to try and summarize the life of this gun, but none are doing it justice in the slightest. It has been a true sportsman's friend. It's been a constant companion through seasons of luck, bounty, empty bags, and sore feet. However, the memories held the most dear aren't the birds dropped or meat supplied by the harvest. Most of the significant relationships I have forged during the last 10 years are squarely located at the end of the red sites on the tip of this gun's muzzle. May those relationships last longer than any steel barrel, wood stock or lead pellet. 

1985 Honda 600XL - $1800 
My Uncle Fred is one of the most selfless, generous, and serving men I know. He is unassuming and quiet yet intelligent, skilled and steady. There are many qualities portrayed by Fred that I wish I saw more of in myself. He helped me purchase, maintain, and eventually sell this bike. Thanks to you, Fred. We picked the bike up in the back of my Dodge Dakota pick up with his two sons, Adam and Trevor. Like father like son, Adam and Trevor are none short in the quality department. All three are role models that any young man can strive towards. This bike and the memories associated will always remind me of the Goertzen men. 

Robertson Styk Bow - Takedown Recurve - $300
Although I didn't own this bow for very long (few years), I packed it full of memory. I bought the bow from my professional role model, Jim Minnerath. The steamed and bent wood is saturated full of conversations, provoking thoughts and laughs shared with Jim. I never harvested any game with the bow, but I shared times with many good friends. The one that sticks out is rooted in the shortgrass prairie of western Kansas. Alongside the chalkstone ranch house in Logan county, I spent many evenings flinging arrows towards frisbees, nerf balls, and styrofoam with Reid, Jake, and others. Until we shoot again, men. Take care of her, Andrew, and may she shoot swiftly. 

I could go on for 1000 more words about items I have sold. I think you get my point though. Before I wrap up though I want to share a few thoughts this exercise cultivated.

- I have spent my money sooooooo poorly! I can guarantee that just about any young, irresponsible guy has spent over $100 dollars in a weekend having fun with friends at the ballpark, in a bar, etc. Does three of those weekends really add up to the same $300 dollars that just purchased all the memories associated with my shotgun?! This really makes me reconsider what I am spending my fun money on. This may seem silly, but from now on I'm going to consider the "sentiment factor" associated with my entertainment purchases. If it doesn't cultivate some memories is it really worth the cash?

- Was it worth it to sell all these things in order to tramp across a foreign country? Obviously I can't answer this question yet, but in an attempt to start living how I want to live I've got to believe it's worth every penny beyond a doubt. Sure, I'm parting with material possessions that have a lot of meaning, but that $300 dollars will fund a 250 km trip down a river in a kayak on the North Island of New Zealand! I promise you I will get all the sentiment out of that $300 dollars that I can. 

To summarize, how do you put a price on sentiment?  Is that even possible? Are sentimental items worth more than non-sentimental items?  Does selling a sentimental item void all that sentiement? Materials may be just that and only that, but they have the ability to mean so much more if you stop and actually contemplate the times and corners of your life they have graced. Parting ways with those items is a whole lot easier if you can learn to cherish those memories and appreciate the items for what they are; vessels for creating memories worth preserving. The possession of those items doesn't preserve the memory. An item may serve as a reminder or even a time machine, but the responsibility of memory storage can't fall on to a shotgun, motorcycle, or bow. If you really cherish a memory or time in your life, should you need an item around to remind you of said time? Cherish a memory by preserving the relationships that led you there, utilizing the lessons learned, and being conscious of how they affected you as a person. Cherish a memory by creating more. 

















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