--- title: A Christmas box description: In this season of giving, sometimes the most enjoyment comes from sharing items you forgot you had instead of those newly received. image: https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Grandpa-with-Scrapbook-300x225-3.jpg --- # [Vita Brevis A resource for family history from AmericanAncestors.org](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/) This is a search field with an auto-suggest feature attached. - There are no suggestions because the search field is empty. # A Christmas box [December 25, 2014](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/2014/12/christmas-box) [International genealogical research](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/tag/international-genealogical-research), [Spotlight](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/tag/spotlight), [Research Methods](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/tag/research-methods), [Object Lessons](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/tag/object-lessons), [Family stories](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/tag/family-stories) [Kyle Hurst](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/author/khurst) [![Grandpa with Scrapbook](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Grandpa-with-Scrapbook-300x225-3.jpg?width=300&height=225&name=Grandpa-with-Scrapbook-300x225-3.jpg)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Grandpa-with-Scrapbook-3.jpg) My grandfather with his album. Click on the images to expand them. In this season of giving, sometimes the most enjoyment comes from sharing items you forgot you had instead of those newly received. Three years ago, I celebrated Christmas at the mountain home of my paternal grandparents. At some point, my grandfather mentioned to my father and aunts that he still had a box of their old vinyl records in storage. Naturally, they could not recall what might have been left over from their school days, and my cousins and I were curious about our parents’ musical tastes. We convinced my grandfather to dig out the box. Among the popular albums were a few recordings from bands (like the drum corps) in which my aunts and father participated. However, by far the most interesting thing in the box was an album of a different kind entirely, a photo album. [![Joins Band](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Joins-Band-300x225-1.jpg?width=300&height=225&name=Joins-Band-300x225-1.jpg)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Joins-Band-1.jpg)My grandfather had completely forgotten that he made a scrapbook of his photographs, telegrams, newspaper clippings, and cards from his service in the USFET (United States Forces European Theater) in 1945 and 1946. He was a member of “The Statesmen,” a military band, so pages were filled with photographs of parades and concerts. There was even a telegram telling his mother not to send his saxophone just yet. [![Swiss watch telegram](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Swiss-watch-telegram-300x225-1.jpg?width=300&height=225&name=Swiss-watch-telegram-300x225-1.jpg)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Swiss-watch-telegram-1.jpg)Already crowded around the box, we all leaned closer as my grandfather’s eyes lit up in pleased surprise. He began delicately turning the pages and pointing out certain images to us. For each item which caught his attention, my grandfather shared stories from his memories. Some were humorous, like when he thought about his old buddies and their antics. Some were poignant, like when he spoke of the German family who helped him and wrote to him after he returned home. Some were even genealogically relevant, like how on my grandfather’s furlough to Switzerland he bought watches still owned and passed down in the family. It was the telegram asking his mother for money to buy the watches which made my cousins and I realize how much we still did not know about our own grandfather. He signed the telegram “Chubby,” a nickname we never knew he had but which was all he was called before he started his own family. [![Saxophone telegram](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Saxophone-telegram-300x225-1.jpg?width=300&height=225&name=Saxophone-telegram-300x225-1.jpg)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Saxophone-telegram-1.jpg)That night as we went through the album, we learned about our patriarch’s youth, but more, we all bonded by sharing that moment with him and each other. The gift of that scrapbook has kept on giving. Now one of my cousins is becoming a teacher and has invited my grandfather to talk to her class about his experiences with a slideshow of images from the scrapbook. He never knew his own family would be so interested, much less a group of unrelated youths. Our rapt attention and questions from that December night three years ago has opened up my grandfather to sharing experiences of all kinds with us and future generations. This Christmas, I will again be with my grandparents, and I sure hope there’s another box filled with memories instead of just the festively wrapped ones under the tree. ### Share this: - [mailto:?body=https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/2014/12/christmas-box](mailto:?body=https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/2014/12/christmas-box) - - - More - - ![Kyle Hurst](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/hubfs/Kyle_Hurst_Jan25.jpg) ## About Kyle Hurst Kyle, Genealogist of the Newbury Street Press, holds a B.A. in both history and anthropology from the University of Wisconsin in Madison and has a master’s certificate in Museum Studies from Tufts University. With experience at the National Archives and Record Administration in Waltham, Kyle has worked on a wide variety of research projects as part of the Research Services team at NEHGS and, with Newbury Street Press, has contributed to a number of family histories. She has been credited for her contributions to The Root, TheRoot.com, and she has also written for American Ancestors magazine.[View all posts by Kyle Hurst →](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/author/khurst) [← Moving to (and through) New York](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/2014/12/moving-to-through-new-york) [Forefathers' Day →](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/2014/12/forefathers-day) This is a search field with an auto-suggest feature attached. - There are no suggestions because the search field is empty. ### Recent Posts [Sailor Bill and His Forgotten Wife](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/sailor-bill-and-his-forgotten-wife) [Professor X](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/professor-x) [Part I: Malaga Island, Maine](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/part-i-malaga-island-maine) [The Norwegian folge](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/the-norwegian-folge) [Research…in a Miniskirt? A ‘Style Guide’ to a Genealogist’s Wardrobe](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/research-in-a-miniskirt-a-style-guide-to-a-genealogists-wardrobe) ### Archives - [October 2014 (27)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2014/10) - [December 2015 (24)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2015/12) - [July 2020 (24)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2020/07) - [April 2014 (23)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2014/04) - [July 2014 (23)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2014/07) - [December 2014 (23)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2014/12) - [July 2015 (23)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2015/07) - [March 2017 (23)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2017/03) - [May 2017 (23)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2017/05) - [August 2017 (23)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2017/08) - [January 2018 (23)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2018/01) - [March 2014 (22)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2014/03) - [August 2014 (22)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2014/08) - [April 2015 (22)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2015/04) - [September 2015 (22)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2015/09) - [October 2015 (22)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2015/10) - [March 2016 (22)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2016/03) - [June 2016 (22)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2016/06) - [August 2016 (22)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2016/08) - [September 2016 (22)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2016/09) - [November 2016 (22)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2016/11) - [December 2016 (22)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2016/12) - [January 2017 (22)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2017/01) - [June 2017 (22)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2017/06) - [November 2017 (22)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2017/11) ### Categories - [Family stories (1260)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/tag/family-stories) - [American History (1137)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/tag/american-history) - [Critical Analysis (1126)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/tag/critical-analysis) - [Research Methods (881)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/tag/research-methods) - [Brick Walls (674)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/tag/brick-walls) - [Object Lessons (617)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/tag/object-lessons) - [Spotlight (617)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/tag/spotlight) - [Genealogical Writing (554)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/tag/genealogical-writing) - [Research tips (510)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/tag/research-tips) - [Serendipity (479)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/tag/serendipity) - [Road Trips (393)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/tag/road-trips) ### Recent Posts [Sailor Bill and His Forgotten Wife](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/sailor-bill-and-his-forgotten-wife) [Professor X](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/professor-x) [Part I: Malaga Island, Maine](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/part-i-malaga-island-maine) [The Norwegian folge](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/the-norwegian-folge) [Research…in a Miniskirt? A ‘Style Guide’ to a Genealogist’s Wardrobe](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/research-in-a-miniskirt-a-style-guide-to-a-genealogists-wardrobe) ### Meta - [Log in](https://vita-brevis.org/wp-login.php) - [Entries RSS](https://vita-brevis.org/feed/) - [Comments RSS](https://vita-brevis.org/comments/feed/) - [WordPress.org](https://wordpress.org/) ### Subscribe to Blog via Email Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. ### Archives - [October 2014 (27)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2014/10) - [December 2015 (24)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2015/12) - [July 2020 (24)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2020/07) - [April 2014 (23)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2014/04) - [July 2014 (23)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2014/07) - [December 2014 (23)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2014/12) - [July 2015 (23)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2015/07) - [March 2017 (23)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2017/03) - [May 2017 (23)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2017/05) - [August 2017 (23)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2017/08) - [January 2018 (23)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2018/01) - [March 2014 (22)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2014/03) - [August 2014 (22)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2014/08) - [April 2015 (22)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2015/04) - [September 2015 (22)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2015/09) - [October 2015 (22)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2015/10) - [March 2016 (22)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2016/03) - [June 2016 (22)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2016/06) - [August 2016 (22)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2016/08) - [September 2016 (22)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2016/09) - [November 2016 (22)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2016/11) - [December 2016 (22)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2016/12) - [January 2017 (22)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2017/01) - [June 2017 (22)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2017/06) - [November 2017 (22)](https://vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/archive/2017/11)