Oh my goodness! I have had the most wonderful, heart-tugging afternoon, looking through my Grandma's old tattered scrapbook, which she gave to me when she was in the nursing home. Her writing on the cover says 1933.
By now it is tattered - its worn cardboard covers have torn away, the pages are loose, the glue on the back of the photos and clippings has dried, so some of the photos were easy to scan, while others are not available without further damage to the book. But with what
is available, I had a glorious time. (Scanning is just the
most fun!)
I will be posting over the next few days, photos and what history I remember of those early days of my grandparents' lives. I found a photo of Punch, the little cow pony who was hit by a train in a snowstorm - I will put that photo above his story next.
But today, just quickly, I have included two newspaper articles that I had totally forgotten about. When I began writing when I was fourteen, some teachers took notice. I was asked to write a weekly school column for the local newspaper and soon the local paper offered me a job, in the form of cub reporter during summers and school holidays. All through high school, I did feature stories, straight news stories, interviews, and at times filled in for the proofreader when she was on holidays. It was a wonderful training in journalism which I could have pursued, had I not been distracted by wanting marriage, a home and children. Sadly, I turned my back on the newspaper business after a few short years in the "biz". I remember my editor throwing his pen across the room in frustration when I told him I was leaving to get married, and muttering "damn boys!" to the air. :)
I know. I could have done so much with my life, had I not so badly needed a home in this world. (Sadly, it would be years later, before my children and I would find and create our own home. But thankfully, I did keep writing, on my own, through the years.)
The top clipping is when I won third place in a province-wide contest for essays on the topic of Peace. I wish I had that essay now, but I dont and have no idea what I wrote. But my longing for world peace - and domestic peace - and personal peace - developed in me very early on:) It has been the guiding force in my life. Domestic and personal peace I have achieved. World peace is going to take a little longer:)
This other clipping is an article I wrote in twenty minutes when the editor asked me for a teen's impressions of Christmas. He was floored when I handed it to him, he read it and said "you wrote all this just now in twenty minutes?" Yup. Always a wordy lass! (I think my next challenge will have to be haiku to see if it is POSSIBLE for me to be succinct. Not too likely!) The title reads "Memory Making Events Still Part of Christmas".
It was good to find these two forgotten clippings. Maybe one day I'll type out the Christmas article for you........closer to Christmas, maybe?
It has been wonderful, sifting through all of this stuff. Stay tuned. My grandma in her wedding outfit, back in 1913..........her with her first born.......looking so young........her with her horse Monte...........an old general store about as big as a carport on "Four Corners Road" - with not a corner OR a road in sight-in the middle of the lone prairie!
I have had SUCH a fun afternoon!
