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| A reasonable facsimile |
A round metal film container that once protected one family's precious memories on celluloid - where images of past camping trips, Christmas morning excitement, milestone birthdays, and family vacations were all recorded for posterity.
I had already decided I would use it to store paper clips.
Engaging my thrifting super powers, I glided noiselessly toward the canister.When I picked it up, I realized it was heavier than it should have been. I opened it and discovered the 8 mm film was still inside.
A yellowed hand-written note was atop the reel listing its destinations:
World's Fair, Dallas, Arlington Cemetery, Washington, Virginia, Miami Beach, Bimini, Niagara Falls, Toronto Ex., Sunken Gardens, and Aunt Clara's.
How this family memento ended up in my hands was a mystery, but it wasn't the first time I had seen discarded personal items at a thrift store.
Glass and brass clocks with etchings congratulating the recipients on 20, 30 and even 50 years of dedicated continuous service, trophies for the best bowlers in the most obscure tournaments from not so distant decades, and even photos of family members peering from behind glass are common sights.
"You're not going to buy that I hope," said my 15-year-old son, who is not without his own superpowers and was now lurking over my shoulder.
"Yes, I love the tin."
"This is how horror movies start," he said, more than a little concerned.
I laughed at his suspicious mind and took the home movie to the cash to see how much it was as it had not been priced.
The employee's reaction was similar to my son's."You can just have it," she said. "I didn't even want to put that out, but I couldn't throw it away either. It could be...graphic."
"It says Aunt Clara's on it," I said, pointing to the paper listing its contents. "How bad can it be?"
She arched her eyebrows higher than the Himalayas.
"I really just want the tin," I said, starting to feel like a weirdo.
"It's all yours," she replied. "I just want it out of here."
What a strange impression this was having on people.
It was starting to get to me me too, but my thoughts were more optimistic. What if there was a famous person in the background? like the recently discovered home movie clip someone had of Steve Martin working at Disneyland - before he was STEVE MARTIN.
What if Aunt Clara's niece (I'm guessing) was actually an accomplished auteur and this film was her undiscovered Oscar worthy masterpiece?
What if the lost City of Atlantis appears in the Bimini footage?
Yes, anything could be on the film, so there was no reason why it couldn't all be good.
This was a life lesson I wanted to share with my son.
I packed the 8 mm tin when we moved from Alberta, contents still unseen, along with a plethora of other personal belongings, such as photos, a red mailbox filled with inspirational quotes, and all of my son's video games.
I dropped them off at the local bus station in a large red suitcase before we flew to Ontario.
The bus arrived, but not with our luggage. It disappeared from the radar - completely untraceable - gone and quite forgotten, at least by the bus company.
But not by me, and certainly not by my son. He suspected the film was bad news from the get go and now his own personal horror movie had been released: Life Without Video Games.
I tried to remain positive, hoping wherever it turned up the finder would open the red mailbox, read one of the inspirational quotes and return the luggage. Perhaps I should have been more specific and written: "You are beautiful when you don't steal other people's shit."
If I look on the bright side, I suppose one of the mysteries of how personal family photos end up at thrift stores has been solved. Perhaps my image is now peering at strangers on a thrift store shelf in Gander, Newfoundland. Perhaps I am right beside Aunt Clara, who is waiting to be picked up by somebody else who needs to learn a life lesson.
The life lesson I learned was not the lofty, pie in the sky one I had imagined - discovering auteurs, lost stars, and lost cities, but more of a practical one.
Never put your personal belongings on a bus, unless you're on it.
Thanks Aunt Clara.
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