Leaving a Trace, the used book I purchased searching for ideas on how to manage censors, arrived from Amazon covered with old price stickers and black marks on the cover. But the inside was clean and full of good ideas.
Today I will share the epigraph for Chapter IX by Patricia Hampl as it describes perfectly what I am experiencing while working on my memoir:
“To write about one’s life is to live it twice, and the second living is both spiritual and historical, for a memoir reaches deep within the personality as it seeks its narrative form.”
Reading authors like Hampl inflames my desire to write words that engender deep feelings. I have one of Hampl’s books with a moving subtitle of, “Sojourns in the Land of Memory.”
The subtitle was undoubtedly part of the reason I selected the picture above. The image is of my Father’s house which was his Father’s house. It no longer exists on the physical plane which is hard for me to believe; so much that was important in my life occurred within those now nonexistent walls.
Autumn is such a rich season, full of letting go and preparation for going into the cave of winter. I feel sad that summer is gone while at the same time, grateful for the privilege of having memories.
How do you manage the days becoming shorter? What, if anything, do you look forward to in the coming days? What do you remember fondly? What do you remember that brings unease? Has writing ever felt like living life twice? I’d love to know what you are thinking. Please email or go to comments section.
Thanks for exploring the mystery – Nicky Mendenhall
If you miss the Clue section – let me know.
4 comments
Hi Nicky! Fall is always a very difficult time for me. Summer is my season–and winter is NOT! Fall is the tough transition; it's hard for me to let go.
Writing is always like living twice for me–three/four/five times, if you count revisions! I learn and grow so much from the process–I'm never quite the same person when I finish a piece that I was when I first started.
I do like the clue section and hope you continue it.
My first reaction to this blog was to save the farmhouse picture. I guess that answers what I remember fondly. I hate changing the clocks but like losing the hour when going back to standard time as it helps me stay up later. At least for a few days.
Hi Diane – at least I think it is you! If Living After 40 Today is another person – you are someone I resonate with a lot!
I love the idea of revisions as living life over too. And the idea that we are not the same person as we were when we started is good for me to keep in mind too. Even though my memoir is about the transformation that occurred during my psychoanalysis, I forget to honor the changes.
Thanks so much for stopping by! May this be the easiest Fall season you have encountered thus far!
Oh Nolan – you always were smarter than I. I have difficulty remembering whether I am losing or gaining time! Thanks for reminding me of Dad's way of changing clocks – didn't he do it over a period of several days? Glad you liked the picture. It was a grand old house!
Thanks for your input on the clue section. I will include it again! And thanks for reading and commenting!
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