Remembering Another Difficult Time in History

For many reasons I've been thinking of my mother lately. With our stay-at-home life I've started working again on a project of hers that I inherited and want to finish before my kids end up inheriting it. Mom always seemed to go overboard in the things she did for us. If I liked one sweater she bought me two--one in each color. Meals were always more than we could finish. This project, quilts for all her grandkids (at the start, six, but became eight before she could finish one), was way bigger than she could accomplish. I know because I was always finishing up projects she would start and not finish.

As I think back now with a lot more hindsight and maturity, I realize that all of this overabundance of things, projects, purchases, food, was probably a result of her childhood. Growing up during the Great Depression was an overwhelming challenge at times. As one of seven children, she wore mended clothes until they could not longer hold together with mends. Food on the table was not always a guarantee. Entertainment was whatever they could create on their own.

While our COVID 19 period can in no way compare to the years of desperate times back in the late 20s and early 30s, I can't help but wonder what stories our children will share about this time in their history. Hopefully they will be of perseverance, sharing, caring, and learning to love each other.

Unfortunately, as with all children, I did not listen as well to my mother's stories as I wish now I had. Some of them stuck though and I wove them into the novel that I dedicated to my mother. The novel does not follow her life but is enriched by the stories of her childhood. Ruby, A Novel, is now on sale at Amazon in the Kindle store for 99 cents and the paperback is reduced to $9.99. It
may be a little longer before we all emerge again from our confinements so perhaps you can enjoy another book.