A viola tribute to a great-great grandmother and suffrage activist! on Vimeo. Performance by Theodore Bloyd in 2012 at a special program in Espanola, New Mexico honoring Nina Otero Warren, suffrage activist in New Mexico.

by Marguerite Kearns

Over the years I realized that I had to write about my grandparents in depth. If I didn’t, no one would. And the stories would be lost, forgotten, and just considered unimportant. I’ve heard it said, “The young people just aren’t as interested in their family and the stories of the times in which they lived.”

This may be true in many cases, but in the long term there is no telling what may happen later. I have heard repeatedly from friends and associates—”IF ONLY I HAD ASKED QUESTIONS WHEN I WAS YOUNGER.”

HOW ONE BOOK CAN ILLUSTRATE HOW A MEMOIR AND FAMILY HISTORY IS A SPECIAL GIFT

That’s one of the reasons why I have persisted. “An Unfinished Revolution,” my work now in the publication pipeline, is a gift to myself, my family, and the increasing number of those interested in personalizing history. My book is a model for others. The rapid pace of change is astonishing, as well as how quickly personal and family stories are lost. Or they are simply tossed into the trash. We have more communication tools now than ever at our disposal. How will we tell and pass on our family stories? This depends on us.

PERSONAL AND FAMILY STORIES ARE PASSED FROM GENERATION TO GENERATION

Dishes break. New and novel items become outdated. And stories have a staying power that goes beyond the individual and family unit.

If you don’t write your family history, who will?

CONTROVERSY—on the Six o’Clock Program of Suffrage Wagon News Channel! on Vimeo.

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