Look & listen as storyographer Kathy Stone shares her personal, family, military & a country’s history through the story of a ship in a bottle.
This object has been in her family for as long as she can remember. It fascinated her as a young child. How could they possibly get the ship into the bottle? she wondered, and she cherishes it because as the daughter of a single Mom she didn’t have much.
As another story-sharer Matt Paxton shared at the same live Show & Tales, Kathy too didn’t know her family was poor… she just knew her Mom worked an awful lot. So Things from her childhood hold a special significance.
Another reason Kathy keeps this object is because of its origin story. She learned of its history from her Mom. You see her grandfather immigrated to Canada in 1929 and had fought with the British Army in WWI and then became a veteran’s guard in Canada during WWII.
Canada built POW camps and housed 34,000 German prisoners during the war. A prisoner at the camp her grandfather guarded made this Ship in a Bottle for him. These Canadian POW camps were, as Kathy says, out in the middle of nowhere. So escapes were almost pointless so it appears that the prisoners and guards developed relationships of cooperation and even some kindness. A special touch on this ship is that Kathy’s Mom’s unusual name is written on the ship.
Kathy wishes she knew the story of the German POW who made this ship and wonders why only her Mom, one of 6, is the only one with this bottle?
She wonders too what she should do with this Thing that matters. Should it stay in her family or be gifted to the museum that is in this POW camp or to the Canadian Military museum? At this time, she’s thinking it should go to a museum because it’s a little piece of history.
There is no history without personal history. What are museums and historical societies other than great big show and tells?
When her son asked what she was doing she told him she was going to a show and tell with the ship in a bottle. He asked why! She had forgotten to tell him the story.
Kathy, like me, believe in the importance of sharing our stories to build deeper connections, community & legacy. Our own stories and the telling of them are all part of history too.
Do take a moment to think about the Things you keep. Find a way to share your stories of the Things that matter. And consider who or where would you like this Thing to go after you.
This short story was clipped from my live virtual Show & Tale: Significant Objects in the fall of 2021 which encourage us to build connections, community & legacy one story of stuff at a time.
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