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Preserving Your Best Travel Memories

Rainer Jenss, Founder, Smart Family Travel

July 03, 2024

As co-founders, Ellen and I are always meeting interesting people at Artifcts. We were very fortunate to be introduced this spring to Rainer Jenss, founder of the Family Travel Association, former senior executive with National Geographic, and an avid traveler. We loved talking with Rainer so much that we invited him to be our first guest author at ARTIcles. Read on to learn more about his story and experience using Artifcts to remember his 2022 travels in Africa.

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My wife Carol and I recently returned from a vacation we took to Africa with 25 other people, most of whom we’d never met before, but all who had some kind of connection to the tour’s organizers, Henry and Claire Kartagener. In my case, I’ve worked in the travel industry with Henry Kartagener for years. He’s also been directly responsible for getting Carol and me to Southern Africa several times already, including our first visit back in 1992 that took us on a safari during which we actually ended up getting engaged. Thirty years later, we found ourselves returning yet again, but this time as part of a “Friends of Henry” contingent, some of whom had been to the continent before, many of whom had not.

As I’ve noticed on other trips we’ve been on as part of a group, conversations between people often turn to sharing travel stories. Some just recount something that happened that day, while others recall experiences from previous adventures. It’s as though the act of sharing travel memories with others somehow reinforces their meaning – and all the while, hopefully inspiring those who are listening.

It’s as though the act of sharing travel memories with others somehow reinforces their meaning...

I can relate. For me personally the tales from my life’s adventures traversing the planet and displaying some of the things I picked up along the way represent some of my favorite memories and what I’m most fond of in my life. I think we all probably feel that way in some way no matter how much of the world we’ve traveled. Either way, this idea only strengthens my conviction that traveling is one of the most important things we can do in our lives.

...Travelling is one of the most important things we can do in our lives.

Taking it a step further, if I were asked to recall what our conversations were about, I’d say they usually revolved around the things most of us do while traveling, which include (in no particular order): visiting new places, trying new things, meeting new people, buying souvenirs, and of course, sharing pictures. In fact, it would be pretty easy to argue that thanks to the advances in cellphone technology, capturing and sharing the highlights of our journeys through pictures, whether they be bucket list vacations or just weekend getaways, seems to be the most common activity we almost all now seem to engage in.

Victoria Falls at sunrise. Click the image to view the Artifct.

But while putting our best-looking pictures on social media has become such an integral part of what we do while traveling, we usually do so without telling the broader stories behind the images we post. Sure, the photos themselves may look great and often make those we share them with envious. But on their own, they rarely capture why the person took it or what it means to them personally.

The king protea, national flower of South Africa

The national flora of South Africa is the King Protea, symbolizing diversity, change and courage. Click the image to view the Artifct.

After recently having discovered Artifcts, I’ve found that it’s now possible to not only preserve and organize the special moments from my travels, I can now do so by also documenting the stories behind them. The very same stories I just might share with fellow travelers somewhere down the road.

Which brings us to what happened when I returned home after spending more than two weeks in Africa with 25 of my new best friends. As usual, I had 100s of images to sort through and edit. But this time, I did so with a different purpose and perspective. Sure, I still tried to pick out the ones that were the most visually compelling. But this time I made sure to set aside some photos of things I usually wouldn’t display in an album or share on social media. Instead, I paid special attention to the photos and videos of those things that best told the story of our trip. Best of all, I used the Artifcts I created to produce a virtual album I shared with those I spent my vacation with. For the purpose of this story, I’ve also made it available to the public in hopes it might inspire others to give it a try. Just go to my Artifcts page to check it out.

Happy Trails . . . and Happy Artifcting!

- Rainer Jenss

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What's New at Artifcts

The Top 10 ARTIcles by Artifcts of 2024

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Whether reading for the first time or 10th, we hope you’ll enjoy this look back at the top 10 ARTIcles of 2024 and pick up a few reminders and tips along the way. Below we share excerpts from each and a link to re-read and enjoy.

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Angela Haupt, journalist with TIME magazine, featured Artifcts this week in an online article that united experts in mental health and decluttering to share tools and tactics to "kickstart a realistic decluttering routine." We especially loved this insight from our own strategic advisory board member and popular TV host Matt Paxton:

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2024 is now a wrap. We look forward to seeing you back here in January!

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Curious for more? Take a look back at the Top 10 ARTIcles of 2023, too.

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Everyone is attached to their phones these days like they’re a vital appendage. And unless you are leaning over someone, you are not generally privy to what they are looking at on the phone.

In the case of this Arti Community member, she was checking and clearing out her Yahoo! email. In the process, she was sometimes clicking through on emails that grabbed her attention. One such email was filled with “Friend” suggestions from Facebook. To be clear, none of these people were her friends. And based on the profile pictures and names, as well as absence of connections to other legitimate friends, they should not become her friends either.

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Seeking to avoid this Facebook dilemma, I was reminded of vital attributes of Artifcts that further separate it from social media, especially for those with declining cognitive health. Artifcts means:

1. 1. No ads leading you down meaningless and potentially costly rabbit holes.
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Artifcts offers you bite-sized memories and stories. Your stories and stories loved ones have shared with you. We spent over 30 minutes together inside the Artifcts app reading story after story, her stories, and stories loved ones had shared with her. The stories evoked warm, safe memories and a feeling of connection with her loved ones. She added further color commentary to some of the items in the Artifcts. “Poor, Scotty, he was always losing his fur,” she remarked about a stuffed dog she's had since she was a child.

Old black stuffed dog toy with tartan plaid jacket

Revisiting Artifcted stories was relaxing for us both, the person with dementia and the caregiver. Browsing Artifcts offered a reprieve from the demands of any schedule and of treating her like a patient.

We transitioned then from browsing Artifcts to me helping her to create a few new Artifcts for herself.

Research also supports that the art of storytelling and exercising the creative and memory parts of our brains, as when we create Artifcts, are good for our cognitive health.

Artifcts are like art, no two are the same. So while creating Artifcts can evoke positive memories, research also supports that the art of storytelling and exercising the creative and memory parts of brain, as when we create Artifcts, are good for our cognitive health. And, bonus, each Artifct we created was set up to be instantly shared with her immediate family members. Those Artifcts are like little gifts arriving in their inboxes – surprise – and become tangible evidence of time well-spent together.

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To all the caregivers out there, we see you and value all you do. We beseech you to sprinkle Artifcts into your days so you can just be husband and wife, mother and daughter, best friends – people first, patient-caregiver second. And remind yourself, every moment of the day need not be about what they need. Prioritize your health, happiness, and sanity, too!

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P.S. In case you have not heard, AARP chose Artifcts for its 2024 Gift Guide. You can browse the complete guide here.

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by Ellen Goodwin, Artifcts

December 13, 2024

HEALTH & AGING

Hidden Stories Behind Holiday Decor

In today’s ARTIcles story, we’re taking you inside the homes of our co-founders, both of whom celebrate the winter season with Christmas trees and an abundance of ornaments. You might celebrate other holidays with a different set of traditional holiday décor, and we bet it too has stories to tell of holidays and people of years past and present.

Whether you have holiday heirlooms, family traditions, or simple merriment guiding your holiday décor, we hope you’ll remember to take a moment to create an Artifct and share a story or two with your friends and family this season.

Step Inside the Goodwin Home with Co-founder Ellen

Our tree is certainly merry and bright. The ornaments include those from my own childhood as well as those from my travels and annual “pick an ornament” outings with my daughter.

This year’s tree decorating was unique, because my parents came to visit and decorated the tree with us. As we decorated, we naturally shared stories about the ornaments. It was the chattiest our daughter was all weekend as she oohed and aahed over her ornaments and reminded us of which ones had to be placed together.

	This year’s new arrival is custom artwork from Brittany Atkinson, based in Austin, Texas. The ornament is more of an investment than usual ornaments, but I love supporting local artists. The bold design and colors definitely won my daughter’s stamp of approval.
	I have a thing for nutcrackers, they adorn our house during Christmas, and they hang on our tree, too. I wish I could find more ornaments just like this one, a gift from my mom years ago. View the Artifct ->
	My daughter insists on pairing these sweet ornaments together on the tree each year. When she picked these out, it was the only time she got two ornaments instead of one to add to the tree. She named them Autumn and Oscar. View the Artifct ->
	A few weeks before Christmas in 2012, I had surgery and was on crutches. While laid up, I had the bright idea to make these gingerbread and gold glitter cutout ornaments. Just me at home with a 2.5-year-old and really really REALLY sticky dough. What was I thinking? I’m delighted they’ve last this long. View the Artifct ->
	Sometimes I just want something classic and clean. Last year I chose a candycane design with a traditional shape made of heavy glass. It's another nice pop of color on the tree. View the Artifct ->

And Now Step Inside the Nickerson Home with Co-founder Heather

Remember the Dr. Seus book, "Oh the Places You'll Go?" Every time I see our tree, I think of that book and smile, as our tree has evolved over the years to become a memory map of the places we've been and the adventures we've had year after year. Each ornament, although decorative by default, holds a deeper meaning to us, and brings back memories from our travels near and far.

	A beaded hummingbird ornament reminds us of our girls trip to Belize with @egoody and @vgoody "way back when" the girls still thought it was cool to travel with their parents. View the Artifct ->
	Our handmade Danish felt ornaments remind us of our visits to our family in Denmark and all the adventures we've had over the years with @Jeanet_Johansen. View the Artifct ->
	One of the older ornaments on our tree, my beloved Parsa Craft ornaments from my time in Afghanistan. Each ornament is handmade from the women that make up the Parsa Craft collective in Kabul. These ornaments have managed to survive multiple moves and two golden retriever puppies. View the Artifct ->
	This one always makes me smile! When COVID hit, our travels came to a screeching halt. What to do? We hit the trails and the mountains with our trusty two-person backpacking tent. Imagine my surprise when I found a tent ornament that was an exact match to our tent. View the Artifct ->
	Last but not least, one of my favorites! @Matt and I bought this ornament after our first trip to Iceland. It is one of the heaviest ornaments on our tree, which means we spend a great deal of time each year deciding which branch it goes on lest it slips to an untimely demise. (Which is not unheard of in our house with the dog and the children!) Sorry, this Artifct is private!

Feeling inspired? Take a look around your tree, your mantle, or wherever you keep your holiday decor and pick an item to get started. Simply snap a photo, add a short story and any fun details, click save, and you're done! Got a growing collection on your hands? Create custom tags using the Tags feature to quickly sort and search through your collection. Some of our favorites this year? #Ornaments, #Holidays2024, and #Cookies!

We're preparing our ARTIcles for 2025. Have a topic you'd like us to cover? Share with us at Editor@Artifcts.com.

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December 11, 2024

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