As I continued today to sort paperwork, I fought a particular sadness that always fills me when I dredge through the past. Whether it’s reading old journals, shredding financial records, or just trawling through a pile of memorabilia that I’ve collected, I end up feeling a bit nauseated and sometimes depressed. It isn’t that the memories are bad, … read more Bits of my life
Tag: memory
Alma’s progeny
Every summer for the past five years, my sister Ann and I have come to Ohio for a week. We do ancestry research and visit old friends. And our Schnellinger cousins host a family reunion. Every year, there’s at least a couple of relatives I don’t know. Usually I know all my cousins, but not … read more Alma’s progeny
Through the lens
In the midst of the reunion, my cousin Gary pulled me aside. “I have something for you,” he said. “Is now a good time?” I hadn’t seen Gary more than a couple times in the past 45 years. I couldn’t imagine what he could have brought from Arizona for me, or why we needed to … read more Through the lens
Someone else’s memories
By accident, I just found online seven photos of Dad from World War II that I didn’t even know existed. The caption for the featured photo above is “Burtonwood – Flying control personnel – 1 May 1943 Cpl Schnellinger, ‘Nice chap’.” Yep, my dad really was a nice chap. Everyone who knew him would have said that. … read more Someone else’s memories
First day on the clock
I always end up breaking one of the “rules of writing”: Do it in the morning. I just can’t do it. This standard advice for writers is intended to give your freshest, most creative brain over to writing. It’s also to make sure you get it done. But I work with people who are 10 … read more First day on the clock
Hallelujah!
Dec. 18: I struggled with the scissors. Moving them slowly back and forth across the green construction paper, I came up with a shape that lacked an identity. It resembled a fir tree only because I used pinking shears to give it a jagged edge. Then I tried to cut small circles out of red construction … read more Hallelujah!
Nauseated from memory
When I was little, I’d get deathly carsick. As a kid I read constantly, and it was hard for me to put down the book. But I think it was good for me to have to look out the window instead of always at the pages of a book. Maybe it’s even why I became … read more Nauseated from memory
Day 95: Memory guts
When we lose a memory, where does it go? Inside the guts of a computer, the information is still there even if we can no longer activate it. That must be why I’ve kept this decade-old Vaio laptop in storage for almost five years. Couldn’t bear to just toss it in the trash. It holds … read more Day 95: Memory guts
Day 92: A life in three sentences
She married a crippled man who later disappeared. Of this union were born 7 children. They resided in Norwalk and little is known of them. This is all I know of Mary Tyler Meyers, one of my maternal great-grandfather’s nine siblings. Except for the bare dates of her birth and death, Mary Tyler Meyers exists … read more Day 92: A life in three sentences
Day 90: Still missing you
I was none too sure about you, Rob, when you sat down for the first day of orientation in Kabul. April, 2004: We were setting up Pajhwok Afghan News, the first independent news agency in Afghanistan. There were 120 staff to whip into shape. We had just two months before we’d be publishing daily content, and only … read more Day 90: Still missing you