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What are things you associate with your mom?

What are those things you associate with your mom?

Do you often think about those things?

When I think of my mom, I think of:

flowers – especially wild flowers but some domestic as well. We used to pick her crocuses, shooting stars, buffalo beans, blue bells, lilacs …

rolled oats – I love them and still eat them to this day, although as a child I wasn’t such a fan of the porridge my mom made.

cinnamon buns she made really good, gooey ones. It was awesome to come home from school and she’d have fresh ones made. Yummy. Recently had a conversation with two of my sisters about them and for some reason I had a memory that they weren’t good. They both strongly disagreed so I spent some time thinking about them and the memory of the ones that my mom came back. They were really good and they were goey. So not sure whose cinnamon buns I had hers mixed up with. I do know that I could never make good ones. Not a skill she passed on.

gingerbread cookies – they were so good. Dark brown with sugar coating.

cinnamon – it is one of my favorite smells. Mom used it a fair bit in her baking. I loved coming home after school to that smell.

vacuuming – she was always on one of us to vacuum. Saturday mornings were when it was supposed to be done. I truly disliked it then and still do now.

the library – every Saturday, mom would take us to the library to get new books

reading – I don’t remember her reading to me but I always knew that she was the one to go to if I wanted more books. And she loved to read.

swimming – she used to take us and drop us off at the swimming pool in town. She made us a bag to carry our bathing suits and towels. they were old bleach bottles, that she’d cut the top off of and then sewn on a piece of cloth with a draw string. So when our stuff was wet it didn’t get all over everything. It was brilliant.

sewing – my mom did a lot of sewing, she made a lot of clothes for us and was determined her daughters would be good sewers. Which I think we all are but none of us sew to this day, except maybe fixing something.

being creative – my mom did ceramics when I was little and made some beautiful pieces. After we’d all left home she got into painting and really did some beautiful work.

education – my mom was one of two women to graduate university in a class of 126. Education was very important for her and she was committed that all her daughters would be educated. She did really well with that.

strong willed – my mom was very strong willed but sadly due to the times she was in, she really didn’t live up to her potential. I would love to see where she’d be today with all the doors that are now open for women.

chili – my mom made really good chili which I guess was my grandmother’s recipe. I still make it to this day. My favorite chili.

bright colors & matching outfits– my mom used to love to wear bright colors and matching outfits. I love bright colors and wear some but not a lot, but I don’t do the matching outfit thing.

being outdoors – my mom was constantly shooing me outside telling me it was good for me – sun, fresh air and nature. This is a huge part of my life today. I love being outdoors.

 

These are all things that are at least to some degree, still a part of my life.

What are the things you associate with your mom?

Are those things in your life today?

 

Start the conversation today.

 

 

Taking the time to get your mom's story.

It is the best gift.

 

 

 

Glenna Mageau, Multi-Award Winning Author & Speaker

Glenna is the author of heart-touching and humorous nonfiction (Glenna Mageau) and suspense/thrillers (Maggie Thom).

Glenna has always had a love of writing. She first discovered her love of words when she started cutting them out of books. Cat in the Hat was her first victim. When she started cutting words out of books her mom was reading, that's when she learned she could write her own words. She wrote her first book at age of 9. Unfortunately, she took a detour from writing and instead got a degree in Kineseology and then worked in a career that she loved. After getting married and having children she realized she was a long way from her dream. She started the journey back towards it. She published her first book in 2012 and hasn't looked back since.

Since then she has won several awards for her writing.

 

I don't know a lot about my dad's story. It is something I regret.

The expectations of her as a child shaped who she is.

It's time to discover her story.

Getting to Know Your Dad’s Story is the Best Gift

Discover Your Dad’s Journey!

Why You Should Ask Your Dad About His Life

Asking your dad about his life, isn’t always easy. Especially if you have an older dad. But it is still important.

If you have an older dad, he had a different role and expectation than dads do today. Dads were often responsible for bringing in the money, the food and keeping you clothed and with a house over your head. Some did really well at this, while others did not. 

But imagine this, you are put into a role that your only experience with it is from the generation before you, which was much stricter. You knew you didn’t like it but where were you going to learn differently. There weren’t any books on the subject. Being a father and how to raise your kids, wasn’t something you talked about. So here you are, expected to buckle up and take on this gigantic role with no guidelines, no rules and now support. You had to make it up as you went along.

Time passes way too fast.

Dads may struggle with talking about their lives

So your dad may struggle with talking to you about his life. Some is because that’s what he was taught, you don’t talk about yourself or your life. Some is because he’s not sure he did a good job, so he might be embarrassed, feel guilt but he also doesn’t want to be judged. And definitely not by his children.

That’s why how you approach talking to your dad is so key to getting to learn about his life.

In, Do You Know Your Dad’s Story? The Unasked Questions, I give you several tips on how to talk to your dad, how to get him to share about his life.

 

Why is it important to get to know your dad’s story?

I can tell you that I didn’t ask enough questions to my dad about his life. And now I don’t have that option to do so. He passed away many years ago. And since writing, Do You Know Your Dad’s Story? The Unasked Questions, I realize how much I truly don’t know.

So first and foremost there will come a day that you can’t ask anymore. So besides not knowing a lot about my dad’s life, I realized there are a lot of family history holes. There is a lot I don’t know about my dad and his siblings and his parents and his grandparents. So much history has been lost.

My dad was a strict man when I was growing up but there was also a softer, funnier man who would show up at times. He was a man who loved nature and would take us out to explore. I’d love to know where his love of doing that came from. He loved to fly fish and had a bamboo rod. I’d love to know who taught him and where he used to go as a kid to fish.

I could have asked more.

As my dad got older, he mellowed a lot, so I could have asked him more about his life but to be honest it never even dawned on me to do so. He was just my father and too often I guess I thought he’d always be there. I could call up whenever and ask him a question. Sadly it doesn’t work that way.

I missed out on a lot with my father.

I know that if I had broken that barrier of asking him more about his life, he would maybe have not wanted to share some but I know it would have meant a lot to him. I think he wanted to share lots but wanted us to ask. He didn’t know how to tell us about his life. I think there were many things that happened in his life that he wasn’t proud of and those are what kept him from talking about his life. He didn’t want us to know.

We all have those things in our lives that we don’t want to share. We don’t want others to know. But for our fathers I think those things might have been even more devastating. They lived in a tough time, when emotions weren’t okay. You were expected to work and to work hard. Having to shove down those emotions over and over had to take a bit of a toll. Some dads became a bit hardened and distant from feelings. Now, some of those things in their life might bring up a lot of emotion for them, which they want to avoid.

 

Your dad may struggle with talking about his life

If your dad is reluctant to talk to you about his life, try to fit into conversations when you are doing something. For exampe, you watch on TV or go to a baseball game with your dad. Ask him things like, did you have a TV when you were a child? Did you go watch games? Where did you go? Did you play baseball?

Start with one or two questions, see where the conversation goes. Depending on what he says, then ask more questions and make comments about what he has said.

“Yes, I played ball. I played without a glove.”

“That’s cool dad. That must have been hard on the hands. What position did you play?”

 

There is so much to learn.

Our fathers can teach us so much, about their lives, their families lives, what it was really like growing up in that era, what he has learned, what has worked, what hasn’t worked, what he wished he had done differently, what he is proud of … There is so much to learn. Start the conversation today. Getting to know your dad and helping him to share about his life, will help him to open up, will give you a new understanding of your dad and it can help to change your relationship. It can help you to see who the man you father really is.

Get to know your dad’s story. It truly is the best gift.

Talk to your dad.

 

Start the conversation today.

 

 

Taking the time to get your dad's story.

It is worth the journey.

 

 

 

Glenna Mageau, Multi-Award Winning Author & Speaker

Glenna is the author of heart-touching and humorous nonfiction (Glenna Mageau) and suspense/thrillers (Maggie Thom).

Glenna has always had a love of writing. She first discovered her love of words when she started cutting them out of books. Cat in the Hat was her first victim. When she started cutting words out of books her mom was reading, that's when she learned she could write her own words. She wrote her first book at age of 9. Unfortunately, she took a detour from writing and instead got a degree in Kineseology and then worked in a career that she loved. After getting married and having children she realized she was a long way from her dream. She started the journey back towards it. She published her first book in 2012 and hasn't looked back since.

Since then she has won several awards for her writing.

 

I don't know a lot about my dad's story. It is something I regret.

The expectations of her as a child shaped who she is.

It's time to discover her story.

Discover Your Dad’s Story

“…a wonderful way for adult sons and daughters to hopefully improve relationships with their Dad, learn something new or just have intriguing conversations with their fathers…” Author Christine Jackson

What do you really know about your Dad?

Do you know much about his childhood? The difficulties he has faced? The fun things he did? The things he wished he had done?

Your dad is so much more than the man who raised you. He grew up in a time very different from yours—the beliefs, habits, and expectations were very different, as were the way things were done. Your dad has seen a lot in his life, getting to hear his journey will help you to understand him in a whole new light.

Start the conversation with your dad, especially if he is elderly. This book is a guide which provides questions to ask, as well as how and when to ask them. Use this as a way to grow, mend and/or heal the relationship between you and your dad; preserve this man’s journey through life and in particular his role as Dad. His story is his legacy to you.

“…this book, Do You Know Your Dad’s Story? becomes more valuable as the decades slip past, providing a snapshot in time not only of the individuals but also of the era in which they lived…” p.m.terrell, international award-winning, author

Discovering your dad’s journey is important.

Our relationship with our parents can be complicated, can’t it? One thing is for sure though, too often as their children we don’t really stop and take time to get to know them—who they are, what they liked to do as a child, what type of era they grew up in… We know them as Mom and Dad and how they are or aren’t involved in our lives and what they have or haven’t taught us.

In this article, I talk about why you need to Discover Your Mom’s Story. Many of the same reasons apply as to why you need to discover your Dad’s Story but we do have a bit of a different relationship with our dad’s than we do our mom’s don’t we? And if your mom and dad are elderly, their roles were very different than they are today. There can be a big difference in how much either will share about their lives, their journey.

Things may have been very different for your dad

If your dad was born before the 70’s, life and expectations were very different. There were a whole different set of rules, expectations, beliefs, habits, access to things… It was a very different time. Often it was the man who worked and ensured there was money to buy the things needed to look after a family—food, clothing, shelter. Men were often the decision-makers and rule makers in the family. It’s just the way it was.

I think many of the older dads didn’t really get an opportunity to spend a lot of quality time with the family. Sometimes there can be a rift between children and fathers because dads weren’t often around too much during the growing up years. If dads were involved it was usually teaching a skill, fixing something and sometimes it was about ensuring the family had family time.

My goal is to help you grow, mend or heal your relationship with your dad and to preserve his life journey.

Getting to know your dad will not only be a gift to him but to you as well. It will help you to understand who this man really is and the journey he has been on. It can also help you to understand him in a new light and to understand your own life, in a new way.

When we reach old age, we should be happy, healthy, loving life,

know we made a positive difference, know we matter and to feel connected. If possible let’s do that for our dads. I know not all relationships can be healed so if you can’t heal your relationship with your father, for whatever reason, then heal it from your perspective. Our relationships with our dads affect our lives in ways we can’t often measure, so the more we are at peace with that connection, the healthier and happier we all will be.

 

Start the conversation today.

 

 

Taking the time to get your dad’s story.

It is worth the journey.

 

 

 

Glenna Mageau, Multi-Award Winning Author & Speaker

Glenna is the author of heart-touching and humorous nonfiction (Glenna Mageau) and suspense/thrillers (Maggie Thom).

Glenna has always had a love of writing. She first discovered her love of words when she started cutting them out of books. Cat in the Hat was her first victim. When she started cutting words out of books her mom was reading, that's when she learned she could write her own words. She wrote her first book at age of 9. Unfortunately, she took a detour from writing and instead got a degree in Kineseology and then worked in a career that she loved. After getting married and having children she realized she was a long way from her dream. She started the journey back towards it. She published her first book in 2012 and hasn't looked back since.

Since then she has won several awards for her writing.

 

Do You Know Your Dad’s Story – Cover Reveal

Writing Do You Know Your Dad’s Story? The Unasked Questions was interesting to do. I had written and published Do You Know Your Mom’s Story? 365 Questions You Need to Ask Her, a year ago. The response has been amazing and I have heard such incredible stories. So it only made sense that I write a book to make sure that Dad’s Story wasn’t lost. It really was my intention all along but I did get a lot of requests for the book.

I am thrilled to say that the book is written and will be available soon for Pre-Order.

For now I wanted to share the cover with you. I am thrilled with this cover, which was created and designed by Druscilla Morgan. She is incredibly talented and I think did a great job of grabbing the concept and purpose of the book.

“…a wonderful way for adult sons and daughters to hopefully improve relationships with their Dad, learn something new or just have intriguing conversations with their fathers…” Author Christine Jackson

What do you really know about your Dad?

Do you know much about his childhood? The difficulties he has faced? The fun things he did? The things he wished he had done?

Your dad is so much more than the man who raised you. He grew up in a time very different from yours—the beliefs, habits, and expectations were very different, as were the way things were done. Your dad has seen a lot in his life, getting to hear his journey will help you to understand him in a whole new light.

Start the conversation with your dad, especially if he is elderly. This book is a guide which provides questions to ask, as well as how and when to ask them. Use this as a way to grow, mend and/or heal the relationship between you and your dad; preserve this man’s journey through life and in particular his role as Dad. His story is his legacy to you.

“…this book, Do You Know Your Dad’s Story? becomes more valuable as the decades slip past, providing a snapshot in time not only of the individuals but also of the era in which they lived…” p.m.terrell, international award-winning, author

 

To learn more about Do You Know Your Dad’s Story? The Unasked Questions

and where you can purchase it, click the button below.

My Interview with Spotlight on Your Business

My Interview with Author Spotlight

Recently I had the honor of being interviewed by Becky Norwood, of Spotlight Your Business.

 

 

We discussed my book, Do You Know Your Mom’s Story? 365 Questions You Need to Ask Her.

I share why I wrote it and what my hope is for it.

I had interviewed many women who were in their 80’s, 90’s and 100’s who back in their day had stepped outside the norm – they worked or got educated. That had to have taken a lot of guts. I learned a lot about their journey. The biggest surprise though? Was that they hadn’t shared their journey or their story with their children. That broke my heart. So much lost. 

Women are amazing but especially Moms. Sadly though, many women, especially moms and especially the older moms don’t see their lives as all that important and they carry around guilt and shame and embarrassment and that which they were taught – not to brag. The times were such that women were taught to work, to do for others and to not really talk about it. And emotions weren’t seen as all that useful.

It is so important to get Moms to share their story – it is such a gift, such a legacy. 

Bridge the gap, get to know your mom’s story.

To get your story down on paper, there are several ways to approach it. First thing, stop thinking, just write.

  • get your information down on paper, then you can fix it
  • do an interview, talk to someone and share your story
  • record your information
  • speak to type software

The key is to get it down on paper, then you have something to play with, something to build on.

Mom, She Taught You the Rules

Discover Your Mom’s Journey!

Mom, She Taught You the Rules

As she knew them.

Mom, she did what she knew with what she had.

Our moms are pretty amazing, they didn’t always get it right but they did try to teach us and make us into good human beings.

If you were born in the 50’s, 60’s or 70’s then you were born in a time of unrest and change. There was a demand by many that oppression stop and that there be a new way of life. The old way of being was starting to change… slowly

But… our moms grew up in a different time. They grew up when the expectation for a woman was to look after everyone, get married, have kids and… look after everyone. That was it. So our moms tried to teach us what they knew—manners and rules. After all that seemed to be the measure of whether you were a good person or not. So our moms taught us—please, thank you, yes, no, how to talk, when to talk, how to show up in public, how to dress depending on what we were doing (Sunday Best vs play clothes), how to eat properly, how to sit, how to show respect for others, what was considered acceptable and what wasn’t, what words to use and not use… the list goes on.

Image was everything.

People wanted something different

She was trying to do this in a time of change, when people wanted something different. Your mom might have even been one of the ones pushing for that change—peace and love, not war. Or she might have just gone about her work. Either way, she still had the old ways ingrained in her as did society. So it was a real struggle to figure out what was right and what wasn’t.

Unfortunately for kids, all those lessons, rules, and manners that we were taught, actually taught us something else—our self worth. Too often as kids, what we saw was that we weren’t measuring up, we weren’t good enough. We had trouble getting all the rules right and when we were supposed to use all those manners. We just kept getting reminded of what we were supposed to do and how we were supposed to show up… meaning we were lacking.

 

Our moms taught us what they knew and what they believed to be right.

So what does this mean for you? It means that it is time to look at your relationship with your mom, differently. She didn’t teach you those things to make you feel less than, her intention was to show you how to let others know you were a good person. You have to remember that she grew up in a time when the measure of her self worth was in how good her kids showed up in the world. It had nothing to do with your self worth, it had to do with her teaching what she thought would help to make you a good person.

What she didn’t know and not many of that time did was that kids are already good. Kids just needed time to be kids, without rules and regulations. Kids just needed time and attention and love. Unfortunately, it was also a time when moms didn’t know how to say ‘I love you’. It just wasn’t said, really by anyone. So your mom may not have said it but she did try to show it. One of the ways she tried to show it was by teaching you the rules and manners that were so important in the day. Or she showed it by all the things she did—the meals she made, the clothes she made you…

She did what she knew with what she had. Sometimes she got it right and sometimes she didn’t. The truth is that one of the most important things you can do for you mom, is to take time to get to know her, understand her journey. It can make all the difference to you.

Have ‘The Talk’ with your mom, today!

 

Start the conversation today.

 

 

Taking the time to get your mom's story.

It is the best gift.

 

 

 

Glenna Mageau, Multi-Award Winning Author & Speaker

Glenna is the author of heart-touching and humorous nonfiction (Glenna Mageau) and suspense/thrillers (Maggie Thom).

Glenna has always had a love of writing. She first discovered her love of words when she started cutting them out of books. Cat in the Hat was her first victim. When she started cutting words out of books her mom was reading, that's when she learned she could write her own words. She wrote her first book at age of 9. Unfortunately, she took a detour from writing and instead got a degree in Kineseology and then worked in a career that she loved. After getting married and having children she realized she was a long way from her dream. She started the journey back towards it. She published her first book in 2012 and hasn't looked back since.

Since then she has won several awards for her writing.

 

I don’t know a lot about my dad’s story. It is something I regret.

The expectations of her as a child shaped who she is.

It’s time to discover her story.

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