Journal January 2011 - Days 15 and 19

I never did find the photos I was looking for so I went ahead and did Day 15 with generic faces.  The prompt was about stories of women.  I wanted to do the story of my heritage.  My heritage is a long line of very strong women. Not perfect mind you.....but strong and mostly independent! I figure part of the strength I get to jump in and try new things I've never done before is from these women.  Chosen out of many are my great-aunt-Orvie (a solo missionary to Burma when she was only 17), my great-grandmother Mary Davis (who traveled to Texas in a covered wagon from Missouri), my maternal grandmother Inez Skinner (who when deserted by an alcoholic husband raised three kids on $12/week - and went on to marry a wonderful man!!), my fraternal grandmother Ocie Lambright (although I disagreed with what she believed, sacrificed so much to stand up for and live by her beliefs), and my mother Dean Guest (left a fine life to head off with my dad to Africa as a missionary with only a one-way ticket).  Those are only single examples of the strength that they have lived by. There is so  much more.  There are other un-named faces going back before these women.  Strong women don't spring from the dirt, so I figure there must have been other strong women that were examples for these women in my life.  And I was privileged to know all of the ones listed.  Now...I can only hope to carry on that heritage to my grand-daughters and make those in my past proud.

Journal January 2011 - Day 15 - Strong Women - My Heritage



Day 19's prompt is Toy Talisman - a favorite toy from our childhood. Well, try as I might I couldn't think of one! No really!  But what DID come to mind is all my books. It all started when I memorized (and recited ad nauseum so I hear tell) all the nursery rhymes I could get my little 2-year-old hands on.  Even slept with all of them.  Then it was Dr. Seuss, then Nancy Drew throughout my early school years. That is when my love of the mystery was born! After that I found Agatha Christie!! Amazing. Then as an adult a friend recommended Anne Perry. Another wonderful mystery writer.  Then another friend introduced me to Diana Gabaldon. Not much of a reader of fantasy books but this series is so steeped in history that I fell in love with it! Today, as a voracious reader...I can look back to the beginning and see that my first love of books began at a very early age and I have enjoyed many adventures through these and so many others.

Journal January 2011 - Day 19 - Books