Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone- My family and I are in freezing cold Boise. Snow sledding is great.  Food yummy.  Games ok.  I NEED to do better.  The family time is best.  I began writing my memory did you?  It's still very much in rough draft form.  Just trying to write it helps me appreciate the skill of good authors.

Make it a good memory day!

Holiday Opportunity - Write Your Families Story -Updated

I received a wonderful comment from a new guest and I wanted to share it with all of you.  I hope it encourages you in my Holiday Opportunity Quest.

"In the 1950's my mother belonged to the People's Book Club and I just recently found the books she received in a box long packed. Just finishes PAPA MARRIED A MORMON and, being a librarian, decided I wanted to find out more about John D. Fitzgerald, little realizing that he wrote the GREAT BRAIN series... Found a link to this blog and just couldn't let the option to post a comment pass. I'm currently editing a book of my own grandfather's writings and know more and more each day how much family means! A. R. Huggins."


Thank you A.R. Huggins.  Every story deserves to be told.  If you like send me a note about the stories you've found.  It will give us all inspiration.

Holiday Opportunity - Write Your Families Story

Nearly three decades ago my grandmother suggested to me that I become a writer.  She and I had exchanged letters all our lives.  She had been my mentor in the art of family story telling.  I remember thinking, when she made the suggestion, "Me a writer?  What would I write about?"  As I looked over my life at that present time I saw nothing interesting.  My life wasn't bad or anything.  It was normal.  What would anyone be interested in reading about. Today I see a different world.  My world had no cell phones or computers, we could and did walk to school everyday. And letters were priceless.  This brief memory brings me to this post.

In the next few weeks most of us will be connecting with our past.  Whether we are joining with family or merely remembering family, we will each be in the perfect position to begin our stories.  Like me, you may not see yourself as a writer, but you are.  Anytime you reminisce about "when you were..." you're telling a story.

This year as you connect with the stories of your past, take a minute and write down the story or at least notes.  File it away.  You never know what may develop.  Remember John had the notes from his families reminiscence for over fifteen years before he began writing the story that became our beloved books.  You may just do the same.

But what if your not with family?  Grab out some photos, videos, even cell phone pictures, or the images in your mind.  Write them down, give them words, description...life.  Look in the treasure troves you hold and tell your story.  Only you lived when you did.  Someday someone will want to read about it.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving

Dinner's Served

One constant in all of John's books was Sunday dinner.  Every book has a Sunday dinner guest or event.  The scenario was the same.  After church Papa would go out to the ice house and chip the block for putting ice cream maker.  All afternoon the boys took turns turning the crank.  In time it was ready.  By that point Papa's unannounced guest had arrived for dinner and everyone would eat.

John always described the dinners well.  I especially love his description of the first meal Mamma cooked Papa.

Their first meal tasted better to Papa than any of the fancy meals they'd eaten in Denver.  It was the first time he'd ever tasted Mormon gravy.  Mamma had made it by adding flour to the grease left from frying the home-cured ham, allowed it to brown, then added milk, and salt and pepper.  She poured it over hot biscuits.  Mamma had made coffee for Papa, but being a Mormon, she herself drank milk.

Though this dinner wasn't Sunday dinner.  I imagine many of them were much like this.  If you ever want to have a Fitzgerald style dinner, I've added some recipes to help you along.  Have fun.  Enjoy Sunday Dinner.