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Catch & Release, Word Fishing: Writing Challenge
Posted on March 20, 2022 2 Comments
“Every man is a quotation from all his ancestors.” Ralph Waldo Emerson If fishing is a metaphor for writing, the title is the bait. I often start with the title. It’s setting the hook, attracting the reader, but it has another purpose. It sets the scope and determines what it is I am hoping to write […]
The Culmination of a Long Dream: A Soprano’s Aria Chapter 34
Posted on March 19, 2022 Leave a Comment
Editor’s note this chapter is of particular interest to me as it recounts Lulu’s perspective in her meeting of her son Milo’s girlfriend, my grandmother Carrie Henager Nov 12 — Yesterday Jessie and I went down to the auditorium to hear a very fine program in Memoriam to the American Army. When we got home […]
Writing the Tough Stuff: Writing Challenge
Posted on March 16, 2022 5 Comments
After writing several of the last few blog posts I had to ask myself—what’s this with all this writing about loss? And I don’t have an answer, but I suspect the impetus to handle the tough topics has to do with the war in Ukraine. Seeing death and destruction causes me to wonder about all […]
My Sister is Gone, But still I Smile
Posted on March 14, 2022 10 Comments
I don’t know how old I was when I realized I shared her name. I don’t know when I came to know of her existence –though it would have been difficult not to feel her presence. A ghost–never seen–but still ever present. She was the sister I never knew, though we shared the same name.
No More Favorites! Plus a New Writing Challenge
Posted on March 9, 2022 5 Comments
It is asked constantly in Genealogy circles: Who is your favorite ancestor? What us your favorite heirloom? What is your favorite story about…? Everytime I hear the word “favorite” I cringe. I immediately react negatively even though I may like all other parts of the question. Even a slight change to the question such as […]
My Woman Warrior: Pioneer Mother Catherine Adeline Stewart Murphy Mosier
Posted on February 28, 2022 6 Comments
The impetus for this blog post was my writing challenge to resurrect one of your women warriors. A woman in your tree whose story lies hidden in the names, dates and places. I have spent the last few weeks on Catherine. I offer this as an example of what is possible to resurrect a woman […]
Write It Down
Posted on February 28, 2022 6 Comments
Aside from DNA, which I view as our personal encyclopedia of our ancestry, anything that is going to survive more than a generation or two is WRITTEN. Whether on a gravestone, an engraving, a letter, a newspaper clipping, photos or a book. What survives is written or inscribed. An unidentified photo of an ancestor is […]
Women’s Origin Stories
Posted on February 16, 2022 5 Comments
I woke up thinking more about the question I asked earlier—Who Gets to Write History? More specifically who gets to write a woman’s history? Why do we yearn for women to be the heroines of their own stories, the guardians of their own destinies and not just an add-on in the lives of men? Who […]
Life in this Eden takes on a Very Serious Aspect: A Soprano’s Aria Chapter 31
Posted on February 14, 2022 Leave a Comment
April 1 – Eilene came over to Berkeley and I cut her black silk dress. “ 2 – Wed Morning Choral practice. Called on Mrs Fryer at St Marks Eilene went home. “ 3 – Washed and cleaned house. Spent afternoon sewing on Eilenes dress. “ 4 Fri – Eilene came again to work on […]
Keeping it Accurate: How Do We Correct Genealogy Errors?
Posted on January 19, 2022 9 Comments
Note: It’s a bit ironic that the Queen of typos and mistakes wants to write a blog post about them but I need to make a distinction between errors we unknowingly commit and those that we ignore or worse yet promulgate for some other reason. We all make mistakes and we all inadvertently pass on […]
Wheaton Wood 