StoriesFromthePast.com

Tag: writing

  • From Snail Mail to Book: My Dad’s Story Unveiled

    From Snail Mail to Book: My Dad’s Story Unveiled

    I can’t remember a time when my dad wasn’t my hero. Like most kids, I thought my home and family were just normal. I had a mom, a dad, siblings, a house, pets, neighbors, and church. Didn’t everyone live like that? As I grew, I came to understand that I was fortunate because I had all those things; but it was more than just good fortune for me.  My parents had very different backgrounds and shared tales of their youth in bits and pieces, which are both worthy of publication on a biographical level, but as the stories were told of a tough upbringing, poverty, independence at a young age, fire-fighting, military, a life-changing decision made aboard a military warship and missionary service, all before he met and married my mom, I began to see my father as a hero. When I reached adulthood, my deep regard for him continued to grow and change. Although he still remains my hero, I’ve come to understand the human side of him.  When my dad asked for help putting his story into book form, I eagerly accepted.

    Now that I’m an old lady myself, and I still have an 85 year-old mom and a 91 year-old dad, I’ve come to see the urgency in getting as many of these stories of common heroes told before it is too late. Mary’s story is more than ready to be told, and I have no intention of putting her off any longer, so I’ve got to take the time to put Dad’s story together while keeping both at priority level. You’ll be seeing updates and opportunities to help for both stories on a regular basis.

    I am currently plugging Dad’s story into a timeline while fighting technological lag, (living in a high-tech world, without high-tech training). He lives in Utah, and I’m in Kentucky. Dad has a degree in Civil Engineering, but he doesn’t use a cellphone or trust the internet. (Can’t blame him.) Although mom didn’t work outside of the home much after she met dad, she does have a cellphone and uses it for more things than I know how to do with the device, that’s not a whole lot of help. I was lucky that I entered college as the internet was entering its childhood, but the lag is real for me, too. Dad does have a laptop, but he uses it mostly for reading Facebook and word-processing, so I’m getting a lot of printout and pc photo scans by snail-mail. I called my son in Utah an hour-ago and hopefully talked him into meeting with Dad on a regular basis to send the scans and docs by email. If I have to, I’ll get my brother involved. (Don’t make me call your uncle!) We’ll get this thing moving.

    Dad’s story will be put into book form, but this is his biography, so my role will be more of a ghost-writer/editor than a third-party observer. I don’t know how the publication will work; that depends on Dad. For now, his biography is planned for private publication, but don’t you worry, I have plenty of third-party observations to be made. As they are approved you will be able to follow along and help, if you can and are willing, as his story is told.

    Just like Mary’s story, Dad’s story is fascinating and compelling. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

  • Epiphany Part II

    Epiphany Part II

    About that Industrial Revolution . . .

    A few months ago, I began researching and preparing to re-open Stories from The Past with a fully fleshed out version of The Second Wife’s Story written written as a series of posts to be prepared for publication by 2027. As I neared the end of 2025, and the holidays approached, I found it necessary to focus on home and family for a few weeks. . I had come to the end of my research topics and was already organizing the very large set of files into chapters and putting details into the timeline. I wasn’t worried, though, by November I only had to tie up a few loose ends and thought I could take my time doing it.

    I planned my new year beginning with my Epiphany post and clarification. The Rebirth of Stories From the Past was set to begin on the Christian Holy Day of Epiphany because the connection between finding something important and the significance of the day were filed in my memory waiting to be fleshed out some January when I would explain the connection. Thanks to the 2025 “Super-flu” which extended into the new year, that post was only partially completed and not in the least well-explained when it automatically posted without my knowledge, a day late.

    Oops.

    To be fair, I was on my third week of battling the aforementioned flu and I still didn’t know I had it. I just thought I had overdone it, bringing on a vestibular migraine that that reused to go away and was steadily getting worse. On top of that, I thought I had caught a bad cold. In fact, on the very day my Epiphany post published, I was in the emergency room with a mindboggling set of symptoms. When you’re that sick, you don’t know to think of course I have the flu!

    So the holidays came and went with their usual fanfare thanks to the fact that I’d prepared well, but The Second Wife’s Story and blogging were left untouched. By the time I knew I had the flu it was too late for all of that. I just figured I’d get caught up when I finally started feeling better and thinking straight.

    That was yesterday; the day I found the accidental Epiphany post.

    You might be wondering what Epiphany has to do with Mary Davis. I’ll have to say a whole lot and not much at all, depending on how you look at it.

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    As far as Mary’s story is concerned, my epiphany was just those two words: Industrial Revolution. It was the sudden realization that Mary’s life was inextricably and intimately linked to the beginning and end of the first of several industrial revolutions. My research following that first epiphany led me down the proverbial rabbit hole, but the continuing epiphanies coming out of that one revelation, led me to understand Mary better, and even more importantly, the human conditions leading the Skeen Family, and later the Davis family, down the Mormon Trail. Six months later I had my story from beginning to end.

    The day of Epiphany showed up as the perfect day to revive Stories From the Past along with a lost tradition, so I focused on that day. Unfortunately my body had other ideas and the day came and went. But I’m back now and only a couple of weeks behind.

    I guess I’ll have to flesh out a new Epiphany post next holiday season. I’m not even sure if it will post to this particular blog. (I have others.) I’ll be sure to link it to Stories From the Past for those who want to follow along.

    As far as the Industrial Revolution and it’s accompanying epiphanies go, I’ll have that list along with my plans for Stories From the Past ready for preview next week.

    Thanks for sticking with me. It’s good to be back!