The transformation of our old farmhouse into a home for this century is continuing along well. Throughout the process, we have tried to balance our desire to maintain the history and integrity of the old house, while at the same time create a home that meets our modern lifestyle needs. We are acutely aware that we are really only custodians of this farm and this house for a moment in time. Country Boy’s great grandfather built our house, and his grandparents lived in it for almost 50 years. We don’t know what the future holds, but we hope that one day in the long distant future, one of our grandchildren might live in our home.
If they do, they will no doubt laugh at the colour scheme of the kitchen, wonder where we kept our hoverboards and our teleporter, and muse that the design was great for the early 21st century but no longer meets their needs. When they begin to pull down walls, we hope they will find a little surprise that we have left there.
Over the last few weeks, we put together a little time capsule. I created an interview sheet for the kids to fill out about themselves. CB wrote a short history of our house and our family, and then we gathered together bits and pieces that show a little of what our life is like today; Lots of photos; a local and national newspaper; a floor plan of the house before and after our renovation; a few certificates from the local show; a lego man, a plastic dinosaur and a few other small favourite toys; a few receipts that show how much groceries cost; a few coins; a thumb drive with lots of photos loaded on it (just in case they can actually still open the USB by then); CB’s old mobile phone; my blog business card (who knows if this blog will still exist by then?); and a few other bits and pieces which we hope, show what we are interested in and what our community looks like in 2017.
We laminated lots of the documents to (hopefully) keep them readable, and then carefully fitted them into a PVC pipe which we then sealed with a screw on end and tape.
On Sunday we put the capsule inside the sealed up kitchen fireplace, and when I visited the house on Monday afternoon it was all boarded up. In all likelihood, I will never see it again. It’s a funny thing to have something so final happen. I felt oddly nostalgic about our family’s history, while at the same time hopeful about the future of our family and our farm house. I do hope that in some long distant time in the future our grandchildren or great grandchildren find out time capsule, open it up and learn a little more about their forebearers and the life that they (we) lived in the early twenty-first century.
In day to day life we don’t always consider where our lives fit into the bigger picture. The days can be full, and long, and crammed with the small things that make up a life well lived. Putting this capsule together gave us a chance to realise that we are just a moment in time in the bigger story of our family, our community, and this farm that we call home.
Have you ever made a time capsule? Have you ever found one? What would you put in your own time capsule?
What a fantastic idea! It must be fun to imagine the moment in the future when someone discovers it and realises what a treausre they have found.
An excellent idea, especially as I fear they may be little tangible evidence of 2017 left for future generations now that so much is digital and not committed to paper. I made a time capsule as a child and hid it in the attic but my sister found it a few years later and teased me so much about it that I threw it away.
Hi Jo, what a wonderful idea. As our family photo archivist you have given me some great ideas and inspiration.
Kind regards, Jim.
Wow how exciting to do that. Our school had a 100 year time capsule opened a couple of years ago then they buried the next one. Loved what you put in there. The kids would have fun thinking about their answers too.
What a great idea. I remember doing it at school but never done one myself.