Jewells of Thought

Daily writing prompt

Interview someone — a friend, another blogger, your mother, the mailman — and write a post based on their responses.

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A little bug along with some other issues have attacked me this week and left me feeling yucky. So no interviews are possible today. When I graduated from High School my Grandpa Freddy grabbed my interest from the first interview he prepared for me. My high school Math Teacher, Ms. Slack, gave us, her 5 seniors, in her class a graduation present. It was a recorder for College. Grandpa knew I had this new gift and interviewing his big brother was my first interview.

Grandpa considered his brother, Uncle Horace as well as the Family and the Community a hero. He survived a sinking and being within reach of the enemy while being in the South Pacific during World War II. When Grandpa found himself in the Navy a decade later the brass wouldn’t let my Grandpa come home for their father’s funeral. It took the Hero Horace Alsman to change the Navy’s mind.

Grandpa’s love and encouragement directing me towards this type of journalism still mesmerizes me that he saw this in me. My book of Veterans information has increased over the decades. I literally have a three ring binder that is 4-5 inches thick of Church and Family members I have interviewed or of information for the annual Fellowship Veterans Day Presentation I used to make. I love being the curator of these stories; each Veteran is unique and I have most of their information stored in my head. Still I like paperwork and seeing their handwriting sharing with me their stories.

This idea is very special for me. I have such amazing and cherished memories of my interviews. If you get a chance to interview or just have a conversation with your elders or a Veteran in your family please take time to do so. You never know how much time you will get with those beloved loved ones.

My interview with Uncle Horace happened and then in just a year he died. Then in just 4 months Grandpa died. Then I began to notice a pattern it didn’t take long after I interviewed these men and then they were gone. Only one man of my Veterans is still alive and he outlived a Vietnam Veteran. Makes these interviews all the more precious to me.