Pearl S. Buck is one of my favorite authors. I discovered her books when I was in high school while browsing the shelves at our local library. I don't remember which one of her many novels I read first but I know that she hooked me and I read another and another and more but not even half of her seventy published books. Most of her stories were about people in China where she grew up under the guidance of her missionary parents. Perhaps she wrote about the China of the past to understand her own present-day China.
Her quote above makes me think about those of us who write family stories, short memoir pieces or full-length memoir books. We reach back into our earlier life to find the material to write the stories. We want to preserve them for posterity but maybe we are also doing what Ms. Buck said. We might be delving into things that happened long ago to understand who and what and where we are today. We may only do it subconsciously but I think this is definitely one reason for writing about our 'memories.'
Keeping that thought in mind, here's something else to ponder. We can write a story about an event or a situation in our past. It's one way we save what went on long ago so that we can remember better and can share with family members or people who read your published work. We tell what happened, sometimes step by step or day by day. I don't think that's quite enough.
Whether your write a memoir piece, family story, or personal essay, try to include what it meant to you. How did what happened affect you or change you? What kind of feelings did you have then and also now about the situation? Why did you remember the story?
Add something about what the story you wrote might mean to others--the ones who are featured in it and those who read it. Rather than make an out and out statement at the beginning or end, you can weave in your personal feelings and those of others in your story. These points will help you get your story published if that is your aim. It's the one item a personal essay must have--the reader wants to be able to know what you learned or to see a universal truth. It's what they seek in your family stories or memoirs, as well.
Consider a grandchild reading a family story you wrote. He/she appreciates learning about whatever happened within the family but they'd also like to know how you felt when the event happened, how it may have changed you in some way or how you came to appreciate someone or something. You have the perfect opportunity to teach a life lesson even when retelling a funny story about your great-uncle or your twin brother.
If you delve back into your family history, you're very likely to understand the person you are today.
My essays and memoir pieces are all off-kilter, even if only by a smidgen. Every story or memory I write is entirely unique. But, the stories are my memories, or what I remember being told, or what I have read concerning that event in the newspaper. I seldom have collaboration. It becomes my sole and disputable memory. My truth has become variable since my brain injury.
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