I'm wondering if anyone out there has writen their personal history? It can be a real challenge, but also a great blessing to one's posterity.
I decided one day not too many years ago that it was time that I start to write my own history. It was really quite easy at first, because there were lots of things I remembered about my childhood and it was actually quite fun. Once I started, it was really hard to stop. I did it in the morning when I was still fresh, and before I knew it, I had over a hundred or so pages. I decided then that from that point I would try to keep everything running on a yearly basis. This was pretty easy too, because I had a few things to help me, dates of things happening with my children, grandchildren and so on. By the time I got to 1985 everything had been going very well when I suddenly was hit with writers block. I just couldn't remember anything that happened during 1985, except for the birth of one of the grandchildren. I couldn't seem to find any record of that year and so I just quit.
Since that time, I have been sad to think I ended my life's history in 1985. A few times I have even tried to get my thoughts together with the idea of forging ahead to try to bring everything up to date. That way, I thought, I could just update it every year. I great idea, yes! But, unfortunately, I just haven't made myself start again. I so much wish that I had kept better records of the things we did or anthing that I might have thought would be interesting. It's amazing though, how many things we forget as we get older.
With this thought, I would like to urge all you young people (and the not so young) to keep a journal. What I wouldn't give if I had kept all the journals that my sweet Sue has given me over the years. I would write in it in January, and then all the rest of the pages would stay blank. You know, you don't have to journal every day, or even every week. If one could just take the time to write in a jounal once a month, just think of all the material that would be at hand when one decides to write one's history. Just do it, once in the habit, it will seem easy.
Having said that, I am going to start with 1985 and move on with my history. I am going to start tomorrow morning. This means I probably won't write in this blog every day. Maybe it will be just once a week, but I will keep it up, I promise.
I started a journal some years back. I have not written anything in it for sometime though. Since my sister began tracing our family genealogy many years ago I really understand the importance of keeping a journal or bits and pieces of our lives in print some place. Wishing you the best getting started on your journal again. Hugs
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you're going to forge ahead, Mom. You don't really need a lot of details, you know. Just the basics will do fine.
ReplyDeleteHugs.
=)
Well, I started work on it and you will be surprised to learn that I now have 137 pages. It is getting to be quite thick. I printed them all out. I need to edit it though as there are a lot of typos. It absolutely amazes me that I could remember so very much of my life. It was a little weird reading it because a few years have passed since I started it. I am so glad I have re-started. I think writing my blog got me in the mood to write again. Thanks Sue, and thanks Mumsy for your good wishes.
ReplyDeleteDarlene, that's what motivated me to blog. I wanted to share pics and stories with my family, but soon realized that I was actually keeping a journal with pics and stories of daily life. I've had my blog put into book form and will continue to do so every year. It's been fun to look back at the year in prose and picture and show others that you don't have to be famous to have things to write about! I had my Mom fill out a journal that asked questions about life and she filled in the answers. It took her a few years to get it finished and then she gifted it back to me all done! I love it and treasure it. She's your age and I'm trying to convince her to start a blog. Hopefully this year she'll do it!
ReplyDeleteLove the fact that you are blogging, Yaya. It's a great way to keep track of what is happening in your life. Also hope that you can get your mom to start a blog of her own. Let me know if she does, so I can read it. It would be fun to read a blogger my age.
ReplyDeleteI think your blog is a great history for you AND your children! I miss my own mother so much and wish I had something like this to look back at to see many of the things she wrote or thought. Sue and your other children are lucky to have you and this venue! I have a few letters of Mom's to me and feel blessed to have that.
ReplyDeleteBlogging on my own is for my children and the history of our lives because they live in different cities and it is a way to stay connected to things each is doing. It also gives us a look back as the grandchildren are born and grow. I love that! Dear friend "Ya-Ya" at Whispering Pines talked me into doing a blog book and I treasure that as do my children, as a family pictorial history.
I've enjoyed getting to know you by reading what you have written already...I think reading others blogs is more interesting than reading a novel...it's all true!!
137 pages? That's great! You are such a natural writer that I'm certain it's very interesting, too.
ReplyDeleteMy husband and I are actually helping my dad to get his life history together as a book. LaMar is a graphic artist working in the publishing world and he did this once before for his grandfather - helping him to publish a book of his poems - "A Rhyme In Time." The family treasures it.
ReplyDelete