I sold our family home in 2022. Dad was 93 years old and decided it was time to move to assisted living. It was not an easy process. First, we had to clear out the contents. Fortunately, we found an estate sale expert who facilitated the end game. Then I had to complete a disclosure document about the condition of the property. I had a mental clipboard of all the deferred maintenance on the house, and my memories of what it was like when the house was new. So, I disclosed everything I could think of.
Another bit of good fortune happened when the eventual buyers went to the estate sale. Then, after they saw that I disclosed practically everything, they waived the home inspection. I accepted their offer, considering that the house was far from perfect, top-dollar condition. Plus, I didn’t want to roll the dice on the slim chance of a better offer months down the road.
Mom was a hoarder. She “collected” many things, in no particular order – belts, handbags, golf visors, angels, knick-knacks, furniture, records, magazines, newspapers, towels, sweaters, jackets, ladies’ outfits, cosmetics, L’eggs panty hose, shoes (Imelda Marcos would have been impressed), rugs, canned goods, kitchen utensils, cutlery, cookbooks, artificial flowers, party supplies, Christmas decorations, bottles of wine (tucked away with other stuff), and postage stamps, to name a few categories. There was a lot to go through. I have photos if anyone needs proof. Suffice it to say, when we found an estate sale specialist, I was relieved.
Over time, places acquire distinctive smells. In 60 years, a house encapsulates the odors of all the above, as well as all the animals and people that lived there. The scent of the house lives on – in the carpet and the drapes, and on virtually every surface. Things mailed or removed from the place carry a whiff of that amalgamated essence. And with that scent comes memories, some of which have a tendency to resurface unexpectedly.
We were able to recover mom’s stamp “collection.” In keeping with her love of holidays, we’ve been using stamps from as far back as 1963 to send Christmas letters to our family and friends. This year, my wife licked a couple of stamps and noticed they tasted like our old house smelled. Sure enough, some of them did! ”Eww…” some might think. And they’d be right.
It’s taken us four years to use all the Christmas stamps, combining them in various ways to total the current postage rate. I’m sure some of the recipients and maybe a few postal workers get a kick out of seeing some of the stamps of Christmas past.
I had no inkling that licking a stamp would bring back a taste of home, yet doing so reminded me of my parents and of the good times we had in the old house. This year when we raise a cup and sing “Auld Lang Syne,” we’ll remember how a little dried glue held on to some fond memories. Burns’ question will always be answered by little things like this. Thanks to a few vintage stamps, auld acquaintance will n’er be forgot.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
MurrayWorks 