Funny thing, how I started making quilts.  It was my daughter's wedding about 12years ago, and I wanted to tell her our family story in a way she would remember.   So my mother and I took old family photos, and quilted it till our fingers bleed.  
Needless to say, we now quilt by machine.  We had so much fun telling the stories with our family photos, that we continued to make quilts for all occasions.  
Tell your story with a quilt and enjoy your memories, instead of putting them away in a box.