I thought the Portfolio Keeping book was really interesting. One of my favorite quotes was about the importance of “keepers.” Lighthouse keepers, secret keepers, and portfolio keepers all have the responsibility to keep watch over the things they’re entrusted with. As the keepers of our own portfolios, we almost give ourselves the responsibility to take good care of our work. No matter which kind of portfolio we choose to create, we have to treat our work with respect. Acknowledging the shortcomings of previous pieces is absolutely necessary, but it also probably shouldn’t be a scathing critique. Whatever self-examination and reflection we do, I think it’s important to realize that early pieces, however cringe-worthy they may seem now, were our best work back when we wrote them, and we still owe the work, and our past selves, a certain amount of respect.

The memory article reminded me of something I’ve heard: “If you want to get a good picture of someone, ask them about how they were born.” Nobody remembers it, so they only ever know the stories they are told about it, and how they then present the story can say a lot about them. I think the same thing applies to family lore. One side of my family tells the stories of our ancestors, and the other side has basically forgotten their family stories. It might not be a surprise that I feel more connected to the storytelling side.