Topics shared in April began with ‘New in Town’, which proved a great way for new to class member David Lowing to introduce himself to the group. Judy and Neville then shared ‘New in Town’ stories with a different twist. Judy wrote a spellbinding story about sharing moments of revelation and wonder with a little neighbour who is ‘new in town. New to the world in fact’. Neville reflected the experiences of migrant children new to Wangaratta when he was at school …’None of them had an easy time… I never wanted to swap places with immigrant boys.’
‘Someone who shaped me’ followed, with Michelle writing about a beloved nanna who was her anchor and who she continued to write to throughout her life, and Elizabeth writing about a childhood neighbour in Ireland, Jim McCormack, who taught her to love and value books.
Bev Morton’s reflections on ‘Anzac Day’ in Goorambat engaged us all, while David shared an Anzac Day story written about his paternal Uncles, Sgt Walter Harold Lowing MM [1879-1916] and Major Bertie McAdam Lowing MC and Bar [1891-1937], along with a powerful poem he had penned to mark their valour.
The pleasure of ‘reflecting on a memoir that means something to you’ appears to have been outweighed by the pain of writing it down! Marg McCrohan persevered, and we all enjoyed listening to her thoughtful, perceptive reflections on Jill Ker Conway’s ‘Road from Coorain’. Bev developed a framework for the class to approach the task, trialling it to review Claire Bowditch’s ‘your kid of girl’– A memoir’.
Barry reflected on an ‘aide-memoir’, or 'a memory-aid; a reminder or memorandum, especially a book or document serving this purpose’ that meant something to him. Initial research on family history by his daughter in 1998 and a family tree developed by Benalla Family History Group given to him by Pamela as a present in 2015 inspired him to further this research when the Covid restrictions were imposed in early 2020. Barry’s story described discovering more about the life of his great grandfather, James O’Connor, who proved to be a highly thought of founding father of the Wycheproof community.
Looking ahead to Monday 24 May from 2 – 4pm, the topics are -
‘Curved Ball’ – Write about a time in your life when you felt that you were thrown a curved ball. The ‘curved ball’ may, for example, have been a health/other biological issue, an issue in pursuing your career or business, and more. What happened? What did it mean to you at the time? What does it mean to you now, reflecting back over your life?
Alternate topic (suggested for newer members to class): ‘The Year that Made Me’ – (A topic drawn from an ABC programs which sets this task when interviewing actual or future Australian living treasures.) Write about a year which made a particular difference in your life’s journey. Over to you!
Bev Lee
‘Someone who shaped me’ followed, with Michelle writing about a beloved nanna who was her anchor and who she continued to write to throughout her life, and Elizabeth writing about a childhood neighbour in Ireland, Jim McCormack, who taught her to love and value books.
Bev Morton’s reflections on ‘Anzac Day’ in Goorambat engaged us all, while David shared an Anzac Day story written about his paternal Uncles, Sgt Walter Harold Lowing MM [1879-1916] and Major Bertie McAdam Lowing MC and Bar [1891-1937], along with a powerful poem he had penned to mark their valour.
The pleasure of ‘reflecting on a memoir that means something to you’ appears to have been outweighed by the pain of writing it down! Marg McCrohan persevered, and we all enjoyed listening to her thoughtful, perceptive reflections on Jill Ker Conway’s ‘Road from Coorain’. Bev developed a framework for the class to approach the task, trialling it to review Claire Bowditch’s ‘your kid of girl’– A memoir’.
Barry reflected on an ‘aide-memoir’, or 'a memory-aid; a reminder or memorandum, especially a book or document serving this purpose’ that meant something to him. Initial research on family history by his daughter in 1998 and a family tree developed by Benalla Family History Group given to him by Pamela as a present in 2015 inspired him to further this research when the Covid restrictions were imposed in early 2020. Barry’s story described discovering more about the life of his great grandfather, James O’Connor, who proved to be a highly thought of founding father of the Wycheproof community.
Looking ahead to Monday 24 May from 2 – 4pm, the topics are -
‘Curved Ball’ – Write about a time in your life when you felt that you were thrown a curved ball. The ‘curved ball’ may, for example, have been a health/other biological issue, an issue in pursuing your career or business, and more. What happened? What did it mean to you at the time? What does it mean to you now, reflecting back over your life?
Alternate topic (suggested for newer members to class): ‘The Year that Made Me’ – (A topic drawn from an ABC programs which sets this task when interviewing actual or future Australian living treasures.) Write about a year which made a particular difference in your life’s journey. Over to you!
Bev Lee
