“Recording his stories…”

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Shared by Kristina Smedley

“Recording his stories…”

My dad and his brothers had/have plans to record my grandpa’s life stories, before the stories are lost forever.

Stories of growing up very poor.
The eldest of the children, and the expectations placed on him.

Stories of being in the second world war and the tragedies he experienced there.

Tragedies that I’m sure still linger with him today, but are never spoken of.

Hopefully, the story of how he met my grandma, fell in love and had three rambunctious boys.

Of working in the paper mill.
Quitting smoking in protest to the price going up.

Being a grandpa; where he shined but also made some mistakes.

And the pride he has in his sons and their families (he told me this just recently with a tear in his eye).

Of devastatingly losing my grandma at much too young of an age.

But later meeting a wonderful woman and getting to spend the rest of his life with her.

I really hope my dad does this.
And I wish my mom would record her mom’s stories as well.

I hope they do it for the sake of healing and closure.
In getting to hear their parents’ stories first hand.

And so the rest of us and our kids get to truly know our grandparents and where we came from.

I also know this could be hard.
I know it will hurt, but could also bring joy.

Writing our stories leaves a legacy.
The most meaningful legacy.

Not one of money, fame, and riches.
But one of history, emotion, and experiences.

As StoryAthletes, Breanne and I have been writing our stories for 16 months now and have over 300 combined.

Already, I like looking back on them.
Remembering how I was feeling that day.
Confirming that I still believe the same thing, or maybe life has changed and my perspective has shifted.

One day, I hope Kaden might be interested to read my stories.
To know how I was before I was a mom.
To read about pregnancy and his birth.

And to see how life changed for the better after he came into the world.

Hopefully, I’m also recording some of his stories; ones he’ll want to read one day.

 

#InspirationallyImpactful

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