WIN is the acronym for Write it Now – it is not a creative writing course and there are no critiques. It’s purpose is to encourage us to write our life’s stories – not just the events, but our reaction to the events; not just the people who have populated our lives, but the little insights or tales that will bring them into focus for our children and later generations.
Because, when we go, if we haven’t written them down, our stories go with us. Or perhaps you have an aging parent, aunt, grandparent – time is of the essence, to glean what you can of all the wonderful stories that decorate their lives.
We have an outline to help us tap into these memories and family stories. It is not intended that we necessarily write on every point; they are merely an aid to help nudge the memories loose, to give us a starting point.
If the prompts trigger memories for you I hope you will take the time to write them down. These are some of my stories.
Beyond the Brush 
I had a close friend. The KG-I, I was in the class before everyone, that is usual because I love to be in the school 🙂 I forced my parents and got my admission. The class now walked in, and my friend Tazeen she came and became my friend. Since that day till her death,on 8th September there was only friendship. It meant, we misunderstood , fought, argued but loved the fact, we loved each other and subjective discussions, never bothered us. We, lived, laughed played and studied. Even , though we chose different fields, we remained connected in heart and soul. Friendship, is a feel just like love. It has no trades, we pleased and teased, respected and loved.
The only time she betrayed me, was she left this world without asking me to come with her. But, she did drop by in my dream, although at that time I didn’t know that she was no more..but she came to say her final goodbye..She was my friend//I loved her..and miss her..but I can not believe that she is not going to talk to me ever..although I still hear her calling my name with much love and sweetness.
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Having a friend that we can just ‘be’ with is a treasure. It is indeed one of the loves we feel, different from love for our parents, or our children, or our partner. A solid friend can be turned to when sometimes we have no other we feel we can say what we need to say. For me, I believe that friend will always be there – always there to talk and to listen.
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yes..
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I’d like to give it a go, despite my memory loss. I have other prompts, my family and a few (very few) photos. It just seems that whatever IS in my memory banks, should be saved. Thank you for sharing and bringing this to my attention. 🙂
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What is in our memory banks SHOULD indeed be saved. Many of us think that there is nothing of interest there. My mother-in-law was one and yet she lived in London during the blitz and went to work with her purse and gas mask every day, and as a young girl she was hospitalized for 6 months. How is that not interesting?! Even her journal documenting her day-to-day life in Canada has been of great interest to my husband. Write it now – besides, it’s fun to revisit the good times and often a wonderful release to go over the difficult times. One fellow writer said that she thinks she has a much better undersanding of her mother after having revisited by writing about her.
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As someone who has undertaken genealogy, I can attest to the value of any material that gives voice to one’s ancestors. A single letter, for instance, can reveal a person’s way of thinking, feeling, and speaking.
Yes, we might as well acknowledge the way that letters preserved much of this concern that we now undertake in new venues. A few telephone conversations with a great aunt who was the last of her generation provided insights I would have never obtained otherwise — and then there was her remorse at losing the letters she had received as a girl from her grandparents, who were still living in North Carolina after their two sons had moved to Ohio and Indiana — a collection that vanished when she had to downsize her home in her final move. Had I inquired just two years earlier, they would have been mine.
Still, it’s never too late to collect what we can. It can often be connected to material others also make available over time.These are important legacies in an era that seems increasingly adrift. We need good roots.
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I have been lucky enough to come across the odd letter as well but my absolute treasure is a journal written by my great grandmother during the period 1891 to 1910, chronicling my grandmother’s childhood.
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Hi Lynne, thanks for stopping by my blog http://reflectionsofchina.wordpress.com and for the likes and the comment, they are appreciated :)…If you have time , please stop by my other new blog http://moreimagesfromme.wordpress.com this blog is for images taken in other countries. Please let me know your thoughts…..You have a lovely site here, filled with great images, information on your travels and some great works of literature..I will follow and enjoy more, thanks for sharing, Regards Mark
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I hope to write my books and share my stories one day.
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I hope you do – the smallest of stories can become a wonderful insightful glimpse of the people we have known, or for our descendents searching for us, the people we are.
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This is a fantastic idea. I have always thought everyone should write down their life stories. Its what life is all about!
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I hope you will join me, and perhaps share a story or two … ?
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This is so important! And then, the stories become our memories.
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I too think it is important – too often we don’t think about it until it is too late and our sources for so much of the richness and texture in our families’ lives are gone. With the passing of my parents several years ago I became the matriarch to my side of the family; I am the holder of the stories, and it’s time to get them down in print. I hope you’ll join me – ?
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I am actually working on a project like that for my own family…
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🙂
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