Scrapbooking, seems like a pretty simply word. However, it has various aspects that make it important to our lives--in reference to designing. In other words, it is a way to capture important moments in our lives that we want to always remember. Designing is important to me because it is a way to show my creativity and showcase my personality.
#1 Website for Digital Scrapbooking and Hybrid Crafting.
It's an interesting question, and the answer I think is different for everyone. Some people seem really militant on including journaling, and while I understand their perspective, as a terrible journaler they often just make me feel guilty! Like I'm doing a bad job with my scrapbook layouts. I basically scrapbook because I like it. I like adding stuff to my photos. I'm not really in it for archival purposes, but as a creative outlet. It's important to remember why YOU are scrapping, so you don't get distracted by other people's goals. Not that I'm not interested in someday being a better journaler...
Great answer and perspective! Actually, I do not keep a journal or diary myself, I tend to let my pictures tell a more vivid and colorful story my life. I just enjoy decorating because it is a healthy and learning outlet; it is a way to express who I am as a person. I go through my old photos looking for unique and memorable ones. As a contributor of your site, I would say you are doing a pretty good job, "detailing" your creative passions!
I tend to be in it for the memory aspect of it. The fact that I had a grandma die with Alzheimer's, I missed out on a lot of her life stories (history) the last 15 years when I was actually old enough to really care and understand what she could have shared with me. So, I've always kept a diary and journaled the good, the bad, & the ugly. I feel like when I look back at those pages (journaling or scrapbooking) it helps me to see myself and how much I've grown, changed, and matured as a person.
I'm not a great poet by any means but I've always found writing therapeutic to my soul. It helps me to heal, enjoy, and process life better as it happens. I originally got in to scrapping to keep record of the genealogical story of my families past because my mom was an only child and my dad was gone when I was nine, so "family information" has always been limited to me. So as I learn it, I want to share it with my siblings and have it there for the sake of posterity.
Great Question!
Sorry to hear that you had a family member die from this disease! My heartfelt sentiments go to you and your family! Keeping a diary or journal is a great way to keep track of important times in your life. It is a way to "freeze time." In high school when I was in science class I brought a fancy large sized scrapbook because I had to focus on the topic of heredity and genetics. Therefore, I had to use pictures of myself and closest relatives to demonstrate the similarity in our physical appearances. Sounds easy, but it was difficult because every page has to be constructed and detailed professionally. Luckily, I am blessed with a bit of creativity skills that I used and of course my teacher was impressed with my work! So, finding the right tool that works for you when scrapbooking is important.
Telling the story... Be it through pictures or words. My hope is that when my kids (or future generations) look through the albums, they'll get a glimpse as to how things were & know who was who. One thing I noticed, while looking through old family albums, is I had no idea who was who. If my mom doesn't label these people before she passes, I'll have no idea who they are & the pictures will be meaningless to me. From a genealogy perspective, I want those names. She's the only one still alive from her family (both her parents & brothers are deceased), so it's important. I'm hoping she'll catalog family recipes, too, so they don't die with her. In her family everything was memorized & no one measured anything; and my mom has never shared any of the recipes with my sister and I.