“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal …” (Matthew 6:19-20).
“You can’t take it with you” (Bumper sticker saying)
This week I’ve been cleaning up a pile of stuff that landed in my living room from my Dad and step mom’s apartment. My Dad is now in long-term care; a move that all of us are delighted with because his care has been amazing (and frankly, he’s healthier right now than he’s been in years). But the rooms in his LTC facility are tiny, and he shares his space with another person, so he really can’t have much beyond the basics in his room. My siblings have made sure he has all sorts of pictures up on his locker, and we took in a couple of Mexican blankets for his bed, but other than that, he has no space for much of anything else. So, my sister, Kate, spent the better part of a week tidying and sorting the apartment; taking stuff to the dump and to the thrift stores, and then dividing the rest between the households that could take stuff. Kate is a saint. Its not a job I had any interest in, and Kate just dug in and had the whole place cleared in a week.
Some of the clearing came to my house. I need some banking information and identification; my kids wanted some unusual things; like all of my Dad’s publications (Elizabeth, that will be waiting for you when you come next). And then for good measure, Kate threw in a few things that she thought were hilariously funny.
Like the yerba mate tea straw that is in this picture.
When I first unboxed the straw I thought it was something used for well……something illicit. My Dad has traveled all over the world and has interacted with many different cultures, and you never know what he’s encountered or frankly, what he’s done. According to my Google image search, this isn’t, well, skirting the edges of Western sensibilities, but is a straw used to drink a form of tea called yerba mate.
I have never drunk yerba mate. And now that I’ve watched some YouTube videos on it, I’m not likely ever to drink it.
And so all of this begs the question of what on earth do I do with it?
And why on earth did Dad keep it, and why did it survive moves from many different countries and many different homes? It must’ve been for a reason – a reason that we will never know now, because my dad has lost these memories.
As I sorted through my dad’s stuff, I was really struck by what he regarded as important enough to keep and to move, and has prompted me to look with fresh eyes at what I keep.
And maybe, really examine the why’s around what I keep.
Last week at church, someone stood outside the cupboard that’s right at my office door and the accessible door and shook their head. The cupboard doors had come off the tracks because something was shoved in and derailed things. “What is it with church people, that they’re all a bunch of hoarders?” they commented to me kinda helplessly. And I grinned, and hoped she didn’t open my cupboards in my office to see what I shoved in there. And then, I was a teensy bit embarrassed because, you know, I don’t really know what’s in my cupboards anymore. The books I use all the time are out scattered across my desk. I know that some of the stuff in the cupboards were given to me, and when something is a gift, I have this feeling like I ‘ought’ to keep it.
But why?
What exactly do I think I’m holding on to when I keep stuff that I don’t even really know that I have? Am I holding on to the relationship? I hold on to relationships for other reasons, not because of gifts – I hold on to relationships because they’re based in respect and mutuality, and love. Those aren’t things. Am I holding on to the memory? Because, really, memories are stored in my brain, and can be triggered by things such as smells, or moments in time.
Why do we store our treasures on earth, rather than in heaven? And what does it mean to store them in heaven?
Well, my friends, I think you all know the answer to that question. Storing treasures in heaven is not physical work, its spiritual work. Its not tangible ‘stuff’ that we can see and do, but it’s the intangible –
The daily communion of coffee in the morning with someone you love.
The touching of the feet of God when you look up at a sunset.
The sensation of warmth and joy when you laugh with your family.
Intangible Treasures.
That are totally worth storing.
Unlike a yerba mate tea straw.
Blessing my dear Bethel friends. You are all part of my treasure. And you are Loved.
~Rev Lynne
Oh my. My grandfather was an auctioneer. He and Nana filled their home with “treasures”. We all inherited pieces, when Nana passes, he moved and when he passed. My home is filled with furniture,
Antiques, dinner services, tea cups and plates, art work, etc. While my kids most likely won’t want much of this, I have always had a hard time letting go of the memories or of the feeling an item belonged to them, In a way, it is part of my legacy. At some point, I’ll have to decide to let go but in doing so, I hope I can give to my children a piece of their ancestral past, like family bibles – I have several.
I have come to love history, especially family genealogical history, of which I’m the keeper. These items are part of that.
But then they are really just physical things!