We Have Souvenirs: Sacred Keepsakes, Spiritual Memory, and the Stories We Carry

In Exodus 16:32–34, God commands Moses and Aaron to preserve a jar of manna—a sacred souvenir of survival in the wilderness. Today, we do the same with family reunion T-shirts, Mardi Gras beads, hospital bracelets—tokens that preserve the weight of a moment, a place, or a season. These souvenirs are not trivial, but theological; they ground us in memory, identity, and testimony. They remind us where we’ve been when we pretend we’ve never struggled, never triumphed, never grown. Whether we keep them for ourselves or pass them to others, souvenirs say: you were there, you mattered, you made it through. In a world that forgets quickly, they keep us honest, connected, and alive. They are proof of presence—of a journey never erased.