Store – or how to live (2018)

Directed by: Digna Sinke | 84 minutes | documentary

Whoever keeps what has what. But what does he or she have? In the ‘personal essay’ ‘Saving – or how to live’, director Digna Sinke goes in search of the how and why of preservation. Why do we keep things and above all: for what purpose? Sinke himself also keeps all sorts of things, from sugar packets to old newspapers and folders full of correspondence. Save to bring back the memories. In her own words, she has “stored a lot of things, but in such a way that – if necessary – she can retrieve it within five minutes.”

Together with her mother (92), she discusses items that are or were kept in the Sinke household. Cigar bands (“While your father didn’t even smoke!”), a pop-up ice cream fun scene made of paper, old irons, textiles and photos. About the latter category: “I only have four photos from my mother’s wedding, three of which are grainy. There are, however, hundreds of photos of my niece’s wedding. I wonder how that will be looked at in a hundred years’ time,” says Sinke.

Because there is also a counter-movement of people who keep almost nothing. Those who live very minimalistic, without ballast. People who have sold their house and all other (excess) possessions and are literally living out of their suitcase. The suitcase filled with the ‘basic needs’: a pair of shoes, a set of clothes and the tablet or telephone with the necessary cables and adapters to be able to work in the ‘cloud’. With the passport as the icing on the cake, because these digital nomads travel all over the world.

This new generation lives in the now, does not depend on memories. They literally take every day as a new day. It’s not for nothing that one of them has ‘Live Today’ tattooed on his arm to remind him of that. As contradictory as this may sound.

A house full of stuff, as in the case of Ab, a Roman palace of a prince or as a perpetual backpacker on tropical beaches? Everyone has and lives their own ‘truth’. Sinke excels with resourceful questions and light humor. A wonderful observation of preserving today. ‘To store – or how to live’ is a film that encourages reflection. Do we go for tangible memories or do we invest in experiences?

Anyway, don’t let this ‘experience’ pass you by. You will remember this movie for a long time…..