It's still a prize possession today!
Some years back, I was looking through my Dad's Family History briefcase with him & came across a small, cardboard box. Inside was a string drawn bag containing a small pipe. Much to my surprise, Dad said it had belonged to his father. He then told me the story of when he was a small child, his grandfather smoked a long pipe. One day while sitting on grandpa Robertshaw's lap, he asked him, "Why is your pipe so long?" His Grandpa smiled & replied, "My doctor says I should stay away from smoking."
When I was a young boy in Pennsylvania, Dad took my brother Tom & I fishing on the weekends. One morning, Dad showed us an old metal fishing pole & a rusty tackle box containing a couple of old lures. "This was my Dad's when he use to take me fishing in Ediboro Lake when I was a kid." Grandpa Robertshaw died when Dad was just 19 so I never had the chance to meet him but I always felt closer to him when Dad took us fishing & told us stories about his life.
Family Keep Sakes help us draw closer to our ancestors. They also remind us who we are and who we should be. One of the greatest keepsakes I know is the Armstrong Family Bible which records a history of our early Armstrongs. If you haven't seen it yet, I invite you to view it now. I'd also encourage you to create your own keepsakes for your current or future descendants.