Trade 22: Tokens for 50 National Geographics

I’ve had a massive stack of National Geographics from the 1970s and 1980s sitting around in storage for the past 10 years. They used to be in my dad’s study.

I thought I might feel guilty trading them off—they reminded me of home, and of my dad—but I decided it would be better if somebody actually got use out of them, rather than them collecting dust in my locker area.

Elmer is a photographer who plans to use the magazines and the imagery within for a collage project.

I agreed to part with 50 issues. Trading these off was an interesting personal emotional experience. Intrinsically they were of zero utility for me. But they had nostalgic meaning & resonance. Letting go of the past—that’s difficult.

In return I got a few shekels (bringing the count to 13).

You might be thinking, that’s kind of mercenary, why would I do this trade?

Giving up the magazines was freeing. I felt good about giving them renewed purpose and value. Yes, they connected me to the past, but I completely wasn’t using them, and now, someone else can make some art.

I resolved to trade off the rest of my stash, at some point.

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