Some people think writing a memoir is only for the famous or powerful. It is not. It is for everyone with an eye for the future generations of their family. Our descendants want to know who we are -- what we experienced, what we thought, what we felt. They want to know what life was like way back when. Sometimes we also have things to say that are relevant to people who are not in our family -- similar experiences, similar feelings, how we coped or not.
In writing Stolen Fields, I also included a look backward as my ancestors had not left much of a written record of their lives -- I drew on old records and what interviews I could find. Fortunately, there were articles about my early family as well as cold facts.
Whether you write to share with a broad audience, or simply for family and friends, you may establish closer relationships with family members as I have, and you may make discoveries -- some welcome, some not. Not everyone will like what you have to say, and you need to be careful not to tread on too many toes. But some truths must come out for the greater good.
The process can be a wonderful experience, and may lead you to relations you never knew existed. Start with the first sentence, and write it one sentence at a time.
More later.
Jean, Somewhere in Maine
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