Around Fairfield
My interest in writing memoirs began when I decided that it was time to tell my family about my grandmother’s vital role in our family. She was both the brick and the mortar that held our clan together, yet she never got credit except for a peck on the cheek at Christmastime or a flower on Mother’s Day. Even though, as a child, I had patiently listened to my grandmother tell me about
8 Fairfield Community Gazette - February 2022
her loving memories of her exciting visit to the 1904 World’s Fair in St. Louis and the six white horses that delivered her to church on her wedding day, I neglected to go beyond her stories. I did not ask her how (or why) a metropolitan girl growing up in St. Louis with electricity, indoor plumbing, access to streetcars, and all the modern conveniences of the day could marry (a country bumpkin), move to the hinterlands, and raise her children in abject poverty. Of course, there were many unanswered questions. After searching far and wide, traveling back to my home state of Missouri to interview scores of stillliving relatives, searching ancestry.com, Facebook, and other genealogical sites, I gathered a plethora of usable information. Finally, I had grist for the mill. In the end, I garnered enough stories, photos, and insights to create a mini memoir that generations to come could enjoy. After that, my mission became to convince others to write their family’s stories while their relatives were still alive. With help from living relatives, they can ask all the questions they need to create a meaningful legacy.
You, too, can write your legacy for future generations. And, you don’t have to do it alone! We can begin it together in a four-week class which I call “Spinning Your Tale,” designed to help you get your thoughts organized, your questions answered, and your starting place defined. In this 4-week session, we’ll start with experiences that will help you visualize your pivotal life moments, and we will work from there. What I can promise you is fun, friendship, and a new way of viewing family connections. Whether you end up writing your book or not, it will be a helpful guide to understanding why you created your life as you did and how all that history can be turned into gems of wisdom. The four weekly hour-long classes begin on February 17th at 11:00 am at the Cypress Historical Society, 26026 Hempstead Rd, Cypress, TX 77429. They will last through March 10th. For more information, contact Jackie Devine, Publishing Consultant jackie.devine@comcast.net or 832.316.6006.
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