SALVAGE SUCCESSES
Convent Curating for Personal Joy
As we’re moving into the nitty-gritty of deconstruction, some of my salvage fantasies are getting destroyed in the scramble to stay ahead of the hazardous abatement process. That gave me the idea of highlighting some of the successful salvages over the past few years which continue to bring joy into my daily life.
I’ll start with one that was covered in a prior post—this 1865 newspaper actually came from INSIDE a wall of the original Stone building (ca 1846) during our renovations last year. I spread it on the chest of drawers outside my room to take the picture that I used for that post. Months later, when someone asked me what I planned to do with such a valuable artifact, I was embarrassed to confess that it was still just sitting on that dresser. Finally, more than a year later I salvaged a pane of glass from the 1964 building and laid it on top to protect it.
There was also a painting of a Blue Heron, apparently donated to us years ago, that originally caught my eye in 2023. For about two years I’d notice it every time I passed through the old auditorium of the 1964 building.1 I became quite fond of it and, after a series of unsuccessful suggestions about where I might place it, finally secured a spot and hung it on the wall right outside my bedroom door.
The Blue Heron, which I’ve learned is a symbol of quiet contemplation and self-determination, is a reminder to me to slow down and find the meaning in my daily life. I especially loved this reflection from Maria Popova’s Marginalian about “The Great Blue Heron, Signs vs. Omens, and Our Search for Meaning”. I’ve come to absolutely love this painting.
Each morning when I leave my room I’m greeted by this joyful Ode to Salvage. Over about a two year period, these items made their way from “up the hill” down to my home, and eventually they gathered to create this meaningful little nook in the hallway outside my room.
Yes, there also happens to be a 700+ seat auditorium.
