20 Comments
Nov 19, 2022Liked by Sharron Bassano

She certainly lived what they call a "hard scrabbled" life, but you were the wonderful result!

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Yes. I imagine the lives of all farm children were filled with work and responsibility, but especially challenging for Katy as the only daughter of very hard, unbending, difficult parents.

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Excellent story. I liked how you wove the quotes in with the story of the family and Katy.

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I have so many memories to write down about my mother's challenging life, and I am grateful that my niece interviewed her on tape so that I have her actual voice telling about her childhood. Thank you, Scott for reading this. I am never quite convinced that the story is interesting to others or just to me. But I have to write it nevertheless.

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Well, I enjoyed it. I am sure the tape really helped.

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Nov 19, 2022Liked by Sharron Bassano

Describes my landlord/neighbor and his ancestors perfectly. I call him the German Nazi. We laugh a lot.

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My mother's family were very difficult people - stern, humorless, demanding. My grandfather, though he was an immigrant and benefitted so much from what America offered him, was still a fan of Hitler. His children despised him for that, as you may well imagine. As I am unfolding my mother's story, I keep searching for the happy parts. They are hard to find. Thank you for reading it and for your comments.

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Nov 19, 2022Liked by Sharron Bassano

Sounds wonderful till you realize she was all alone even with a big group.... "family"... on the farm, and had the guts to walk away at just 16.

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That is it exactly. Farming was a challenging life for all kids in the 1920s, but Katy was safer and found more love out in the world than she ever did at home. She was a little foolish and made a lot of mistakes, as we all do, but she was brave and she was kind.

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Nov 19, 2022Liked by Sharron Bassano

Can't do better than that ))))

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Sharron, this post is a beautifully-written delight - this is my kind of history. Such a hard, hard working life - I'm just thinking 'wow' and feeling very grateful for everything that I have.

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Thank you, Rebecca for this kind comment. This is a hard story to retell, but I work on it a little every day, trying to piece together my mother's life from memory. I wake up every morning and count all the good things in my life. A good way to begin the day.

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I felt like I was sitting there on that farm watching their world unfold. Thanks for taking me there, Sharron. Beautifully written.

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Thank you, Heather. More bits of my mother's story out into the world. Happiest of holidays to you and to all those who love you out there wherever you are.

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Hi Having access to those memories is priceless . Neither of my parents shared their family history with me. I would love to have known them better.

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Thank you, Janice. My mother told me her stories over and over and over, so I have a lot of memories to work from. But I am especially happy to have the recording of her own voice, her own words. There is still so very much I want to ask her now that it is too late. So many pieces I am missing.

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Nov 19, 2022Liked by Sharron Bassano

Wow. Just wow.

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Thanks for reading this memoir, Julia. I still have a few more to go and am trying to get them down as they come to mind. Happy holiday to you.

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Nov 20, 2022·edited Nov 20, 2022Liked by Sharron Bassano

Well done, Sharron! Keep sharing your family’s history.

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I am hoping their lives will provide meaningful reading to other people, but I am never quite sure. I only met my German grandparents two times back there on the farm, so my stories only come from mama, and from her perspective. Than you, Jenise, for continuing to read my things.

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