Our first session in the U3A meeting room for over three months began with the sharing of earthquake and lockdown stories!   After a warm up activity, 'Share a story with another class member about a time when you got into trouble...', Neville and Val shared Right Here, Right Now ' stories, with Neville responding to being in lockdown, and Val writing about the house she is living in right here, right now, including her recent experience of the earthquake! 
                       
Sometimes our monthly topics are rather tricky - 'If only I...' was one of these. Marg McCrohan described her ambivalence about writing on a topic which had caused anxiety and loss of sleep, while Joy reframed the topic by beginning ‘If only I had NOT… I would not have … (positive outcome)’.  Barry’s story could have been titled ‘If only I’d … listened to my parents’.  Ray wrote two captivating vignettes – ‘If only I’d known … (there were 263 steps to the top of the tower)’ and ‘If only I … (hadn’t become distracted)’, while Bev’s story ... 'If only I'd... learned French at School' had a humorous twist.  In a memoir piece written at a deeper level, Michelle shared a moving story ... 'If Only I'd ...stayed with my aunt and uncle'.

It was lovely to welcome Marg Nelson back and to hear her 'Crash', 'Curved Ball' and 'Stock and Land' stories.

Coming up in October, our first topic ‘This (……) Life’ draws upon The Australian Weekend Magazine’s ‘This Life’ story format.   The brief - Write a 500-word story under the broad theme of 'This Life', inserting your theme in brackets in the title as the topic emerges.  Examples in the Weekend Magazine have included ‘This (Downsizing) Life’ by an 80+ year old about planning to farewell loved home; 'This (Number 8) Life’ about growing up as ‘Number 8’ in a family of nine children.  If you are having trouble getting started, check out last year's stories at ​u3abenalla.weebly.com/this-life.   

Our alternative topic is ‘A test of courage’, the brief - ‘Has your courage ever been tested? Tell us a story of your bravery, or when you should have been brave but couldn't summon the courage'.    
Some additional information:  Has life ever presented you with a situation that forced you to dig deep, to do something that put you at risk? Maybe it was a split-second reaction when you helped someone in harm’s way, or something you deliberated over for years, like a love letter. It could be as personal as telling a friend a difficult truth, or as public as protesting against what you believe is wrong.  What was at stake, and what strengths did you need to draw upon in the face of pain or grief? What did you learn about yourself from doing something that was frightening?

If you would like to read some stories on 'A Test of Courage', here's the link to search results from our home page -  https://u3abenalla.weebly.com/apps/search?q=A+Test+of+Courage.
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It’s taster time – if you would like to join us in October and November, perhaps bringing a story chosen from one of our monthly topics, you are most welcome.

Bev Lee

With only two days notice, we moved from a pilot Zoom meeting in June to a scheduled Zoom session in August.  We had been looking forward to meeting together again in the U3A meeting room, but that wasn't to be!  Zoom actually seems to suit our sessions rather well, as we can follow the stories on screen while the writer is reading their story to us.   

Despite a technical hitch at the beginning, which saw David waiting to join during the break, we had a session rich in story telling and responses from the group.  'Crash' stories were shared by Barry, Ray and David; with 'Stock and Land' stories shared by the two Bev's, Val, Marg McCrohan, and David (about his 'other life' as a shearer), and a thought provoking 'Cringe' story shared by Helen.  There are new stories on the website from Michelle and Elizabeth - 'Crash'; and Marg Nelson's 'Curved Ball'.   

​Being at home, we had an additional activity inspired by Bev's 'show and tell' of a bottle of tomato relish made by Swanpool's Joan Warnock which reminded her of her Grandmother's tomato relish and meals of corned beef with relish from her childhood.  Class members were sent to raid their kitchens, returning to hold up and visually share bottles of preserved lemons, relishes made by friends, home made tomato sauces, yo yo's 'almost as good as my aunt's lamingtons', a cauliflower 'which we always had in Ireland with a salted pork cut'; an old 'knife sharpener used by my father', finishing with Greg's piece de resistance, a bottle of methylated spirits, always used to treat cuts during his childhood, and even now!

With 'Right Here, Right Now' a topic next month, we checked out last year's 'Right Here, Right Now', stories.  With us being once again in a hard lockdown and with most of last August's stories responding to the pandemic during a hard lockdown, even a quick overview of them had quite a powerful effect on us.  If you would like to read them, here's the link - ​u3abenalla.weebly.com/right-here-right-now

Coming up on Monday September 27  '

‘If only I’d…’ Even though we are advised not to dwell on ‘if only’s’… we often do!  Write about an ‘if only’ moment in your life in 500 words, describing the context surrounding it as richly as you can.  Choose something which won’t make you depressed, something you feel you have ‘dealt with’, but at the same time something which shares the impact of even a brief moment in your life

‘Right Here, Right Now’ (R) (F) ‘A time capsule of the present.  Write a story about a situation currently unfolding in your life, right here, right now.’

​Bev Lee

With the sudden lockdown announced yesterday Saturday 21 August, the opportunity to meet together in the U3A room suddenly disappeared!  So - it's on to Plan B and/or Plan C (you choose)!  Plan B is to send your stories to me at bevlee47@gmail.com for sharing on the website as we did in 2020, while Plan C is to send your stories to me at bevlee47@gmail.com and join in a Zoom meeting to read stories through together and provide responses to the story teller in a supportive environment.  

If you would like to join our Zoom session - here is the invitation/link: 

Topic: As Time Goes By August Meeting
Time: Aug 23, 2021 02:00 PM 

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/9208279060?pwd=L0t4cDQ1YmNkdDEwL3N4UjJFOEhkUT09

Meeting ID: 920 827 9060
Passcode: m2G814

If you would like some help learning to use Zoom, please give me a call on 0478 607 838 or email me on bevlee47@gmail.com.

A reminder of the tomorrow's topics:  

The topic for Monday 23 August is ‘Crash!’ The brief - 'It could be a car crash, it could in fact be any other crash.  Write about a crash, from the sudden moment of impact to its impact on your life, in 500 words.'

A popular topic offered as an alternative in August is ‘Stock and Land’  - 'Tell us about a significant memory involving farming, agriculture or rural life.  You must include mention of at least one animal or crop and one piece of farm equipment.  If you haven’t lived on a farm, you might like to write about a long-remembered visit to or experience of a farm or agriculture, something referencing rural life, ideally set in the northeast.  It could even be about memories of a visit to an agricultural show or about backyard chooks in urban settings.  Write about something you haven’t written about before which you’d like to share with your family and others'.

Coming up on Monday September 27  '

‘If only I’d…’ Even though we are advised not to dwell on ‘if only’s’… we often do!  Write about an ‘if only’ moment in your life in 500 words, describing the context surrounding it as richly as you can.  Choose something which won’t make you depressed, something you feel you have ‘dealt with’, but at the same time something which shares the impact of even a brief moment in your life

‘Right Here, Right Now’ (R) (F) ‘A time capsule of the present.  Write a story about a situation currently unfolding in your life, right here, right now.’

Looking forward to reading your stories and perhaps chatting with you on Zoom!

Best wishes,

​Bev

Back in isolation!  What to do?  We reverted to adding shared stories to a  'collection' posted on the website, as we did during 2020.

Stories on July's topic 'Cringe' are still coming in.  The brief -  ‘Your eyes squint, your cheeks burn red, your teeth grate. Share a personal cringe-worthy tale of woe that you can’t quite forget’.  Stories sent in to date by Elizabeth, Bev Morton, Barry and Margaret have been added to the 'Cringe' story collection on the website -  https://u3abenalla.weebly.com/cringe.

With the possibility of future lockdowns likely, four class members already comfortable with Zoom joined me at short notice to trial an optional 'Zoom' session at our usual time.  Sharing stories on line worked well - Barry's stories featuring 'Hypol', 'Milk of Magnesia' and childhood dentists resulted in hoots of laughter; while Margaret's and Val's stories of cringe-worthy experiences involving feeling humiliated generated squirms of recognition. We all agreed it is  worth working towards offering sessions via Zoom during future lockdowns. 

A list of topics for the remainder of the year has been e-mailed out to class members and is available on the website.  The list includes previous topics too, just in case you missed one or have one you would still like to share.

The topic for Monday 23 August is  ‘Crash!’ The brief - 'It could be a car crash, it could in fact be any other crash.  Write about a crash, from the sudden moment of impact to its impact on your life, in 500 words.'

A popular topic offered as an alternative in August is ‘Stock and Land’  - 'Tell us about a significant memory involving farming, agriculture or rural life.  You must include mention of at least one animal or crop and one piece of farm equipment.  If you haven’t lived on a farm, you might like to write about a long-remembered visit to or experience of a farm or agriculture, something referencing rural life, ideally set in the north east.  It could even be about memories of a visit to an agricultural show or about backyard chooks in urban settings.  Write about something you haven’t written about before which you’d like to share with your family and others'

Stay warm and keep writing,

Bev

We began our June session with Bev introducing the concept of Six Word Memoirs developed by Larry Smith (refer Ted talk below). Bev's six word 'slice of life'...'Ageing, not for the faint hearted'!  Bev asked the class to develop a six word memoir both  before watching the video, then after, with some really perceptive, thought provoking 'six word memoirs' being shared by class members as a result.

All members chose to write about 'A Childhood Experience' this month, with wonderful stories shared evoking memories of learning to ride a bike, a first homes, a treasured day out with a loving grandfather, a child's vivid imagination, hairwashing day with grandma, 'the boogeyman', an Irish childhood, including stories of 'banshee's' and more, a first concert "Peter and the Wolf', Deniliquin childhood memories of floods, dust storms and more; of spending time  with 'my cobber, Uncle Doogie'; not so loving childhood memories with the 'Sisters of Mercy'; and, still to be shared, David's memories of pets with wonderful names and rabbiting with his mate 'Bantam Jim'.  These stories can be read by following this link...'A Childhood Memory'. 

We had some fun thinking about the concept of our next topic ... 'Cringe'... with a few 'aha' moments as people thought of an idea which might work.  The brief -  ‘Your eyes squint, your cheeks burn red, your teeth grate. Share a personal cringe-worthy tale of woe that you can’t quite forget’.  

The alternative topic, recommended for newer class members, is ‘Ideas Piggy Bank’.
 
1) Create/draw upon an ‘Ideas Piggy Bank’ such as a shoe box or other box or drawer containing objects and artefacts that enliven your memories, through scent and feel.  Maps, menus, theatre programs, an old report card, vials of perfume, a garment, treasured photographs, a souvenir, an expired passport can sometimes trigger a work rich with detail.  
​
(2) Select two items from the piggy bank as creative prompts – what do they mean to you?  What were you doing, why; what were you thinking at the time this object related to your life?   (250 words for each object)

A list of topics for the year is now available.  It flags the topics for the remaining months, which and can be downloaded from the link below.
​

We are looking forward to hearing and sharing stories on ‘A childhood experience’ or ‘My Other Life’ on Monday 28th June.  The story collection at https://u3abenalla.weebly.com/childhood-memory will be added to after the class.

The topic for our next session Monday 26th July is ‘Cringe’ – ‘Your eyes squint, your cheeks burn red, your teeth grate. Share a personal cringe-worthy tale of woe that you can’t quite forget’.   The alternative topic, recommended for newer class members, is ‘Ideas Piggy Bank’. 

1) Create/draw upon an ‘Ideas Piggy Bank’ such as a shoe box or other box or drawer containing objects and artefacts that enliven your memories, through scent and feel.  Maps, menus, theatre programs, an old report card, vials of perfume, a garment, treasured photographs, a souvenir, an expired passport can sometimes trigger a work rich with detail.  
(2) Select two items from the piggy bank as creative prompts – what do they mean to you?  What were you doing, why; what were you thinking at the time this object related to your life?   (250 words for each object)


Beverley Lee

Our May session began with a new routine - a 'Slam' list on the whiteboard - with people's contributions for the day added as they arrived.  Stories were listed on the two topics for the day, 'Curved Ball' and 'The Year that Made Me',  earlier topics including 'Someone who Shaped Me', and 'other' topics.   
​
As last week was Volunteer Week, we began with two fascinating stories about volunteering - David Lowing's 'Someone who Shaped Me' and Barry O'Connor's 'The Year that (made) Challenged Me' - 2013.    

'Curved Ball' challenged us to write about some of life's difficulties, about being thrown a curved ball.   Marg and Helen shared moving stories about serious health issues; Shirley a mother's story of a car accident in which her son was critically injured; Elizabeth a story about  difficulties selling a business,and Joy a story of of her husband being suddenly posted overseas when her children were small and she was about to begin a Diploma of Education at university. The writing and sharing of these stories was made easier by the writers revealing how they were able to deal with the curved balls they were thrown. 

The alternate topic, 'The Year that Made Me' (A topic drawn from an ABC programs which sets this task when interviewing actual or future Australian living treasures.) - drew forth not only Barry's story of volunteering in 2013, but Neville's story which described a fascination with Mary Quant which led to his life changing move to London in 1968!

Catch up stories included Val's 'Someone who Shaped Me' and Moira's memoir review of 'Salvation Creek'.  Our adventure travel writer extraordinaire Bev Morton shared spellbinding memories of camping in Greenland with polar bears in the vicinity.  Ray and Judy read stories which related to a number of  topics/themes - Ray 'Turning Point' and Judy 'A Day for Annie', a beautiful story which won a statewide U3A writing award some years ago.  

Next month' topics  (Monday 28 June)
‘A Childhood Memory’ -  Some childhood memories stay with us despite the passage of time.  Some of these memories involve something which happened which inspired and built on our imagination.  Share a story taking us back to one of your earliest memories. (Checking out Helen’s story at https://u3abenalla.weebly.com/helens-stories/we-have-fairies-in-our-family-a-childhood-memory ​may to help to stimulate your memories).
 
Alternate topic (a previous topic for newer members to class)  ‘My Other Life’ –  Are you a collector of model trains, a swing dance enthusiast or a weekend activist? Share a story about something unusual you get up to outside of work, or a side of yourself that other people don't normally see… Tell us about your unusual passion and how you first got involved in it. How does your ‘other self’ contrast with the side most people see?  What satisfaction does your other life offer you that you don't get from your day-to-day life? How does your passion contribute to you as a whole person?


Bev Lee

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

This year we are exploring ideas about memoir writing in addition to sharing our stories.  In March we considered memoir writer Louisa Deasey’s recommendation to prepare a key sentence when writing memoir as a way of retaining focus, and the role of universal themes in memoir.  

Our sharing of stories on the topics ‘Too Hard Basket’ and ‘New in Town’ was most enjoyable – common experiences often emerge as our stories are shared.  Most writers overcame the problem in danger of remaining in their too hard basket, while those choosing ‘New in Town’ reflected on strategies used to successfully settle in, to make connections with others, when new to town.
​
500-word topics for our next class on Monday 26th April from 2 – 4 pm:
‘A memoir which has meant something to me’   Head for your bookshelf, the library or an online bookstore to retrieve a memoir which has meant something to you.  When did it enter your life?  How did it then, or does it now, relate to your life story?   What might have been Louisa Deasey’s key sentence for the book?  What universal truth/s does it relate to.  
Alternate topics (for newer members to class)
‘Someone who shaped me’ - How did you become who you are?  Think about someone who has influenced your life and start writing.
Additional topic – ‘Anzac Day’ – perhaps Anzac Day triggered, or often triggers, particular memories for you, or reminds you of a story you heard as a child.  Share this story in 500 words.
 
Beverley Lee
 

How wonderful to be able to meet in the U3A meeting room again to share our writing, to welcome returning and new class members and to thank those who contributed to the wonderful collections of stories published on the website over the long 2020 Covid break. 

After an introduction to the course and the nature of memoirs as ‘slices from life’, stories were shared on the first of our summer break topics, ‘One Moment, This Year’ (1920).   These beautiful stories largely drew on lived experiences during the Pandemic.  Stories shared for the second topic ‘A love letter to travel’ took us away to ‘Trim on the banks of the Boyne’, Ireland; Hans Heysen’s home ‘The Cedars’ at Hahndorf; to Barcelona; Yosemite National Park; Scotland; Morang homestead in central New South Wales; and Annamult in County Kilkenny, Ireland.   These stories can be found, with Claire’s early submission ‘Bali’ and some soon to be added ‘love letters’ to Marong station homestead in Central New South Wales; to the Camino de Compostelo in Spain; and to Mexico, on the website. 

This year two 500 word topics will be suggested each month, one new to intrigue longer term members, the other a previously offered ‘gem’ for newer members to add to their portfolio of stories. 

The new topic for March is  ‘Too Hard Basket’ – write about a time when you faced a dilemma which might have to be put into your ‘too hard basket’.  Unravel what happened, whether it was a ‘problem solved’, was resolved over time or perhaps remains in your too hard basket to this day.  

The alternate topic is ‘New in Town’ -  Have you ever been the new person in town?  Or did someone else's arrival have a profound impact on you?  Share your story in 500 words.  
   . 
An aura of joy and contentment seemed to be in the room as we said farewells at the end of the session, perhaps because we had been reminiscing about treasured travel destinations, perhaps because we could be together again. 
​
Beverley Lee

This update email was sent to members by email today (15 Feb)

Hello everyone,

Welcome to 'As Time Goes By' for 2021.  I am hoping we will be able to return to meeting in the U3A Meeting Room next Monday 22nd February from 2 to 4 pm as currently scheduled.  Covid restrictions may, however, make this impossible, added to which we are still waiting for final confirmation that the room has been readied for occupation following building renovations/maintenance.  

We need a fallback position!  Last year's submission of stories by email to be added to a story collection each month proved to be quite effective.  Let's make the submission of stories to bevlee47@gmail.com by the fourth Monday the plan for 2021.  Members have described enjoying reading each month's 'collection' online.  We can still bring along stories or almost completed stories each month, even if incomplete or in the 'ideas' stage requiring input from the group.  

A special welcome to new members!  It is wonderful to have you on board.  If you would like to take the plunge and contribute a 500 word story (topics below) in February, that would be excellent, however don't feel you have to.  It's fine to 'pass' until you feel comfortable. Feel free to use and develop your own writing style, to use your own voice.  While 500 words is suggested as a word limit, there is no penalty if you go over this!   if you haven't written for a while and are finding it hard to get started - I've attached two documents which might be helpful.  

Two topics were set over the holiday period - 'One Moment, This Year' and 'A Love Letter to Travel'.  A few stories have been sent in already so you can click on the links to receive inspiration.  I've also added a topic 'Grandparent/s', which has proven to be an enjoyable way to begin writing reminiscence based stories.  (It may also appeal to existing members who are keen to look at another side of their family.)  
______________________

Topic Details for Monday 22nd February 
'One Moment, This Year'  “Looking back on 2020, what single moment stands out for you?  Whether it be loss, love, discovery or disappointment, share your unforgettable moment.”
​
‘A Love Letter to Travel’   
This topic was suggested by the New York Times... "while the coronavirus pandemic has disrupted global travel in unprecedented ways ...and we can’t know what lies ahead, we can still share the places we’ve loved, and continue to inspire curiosity, open-mindedness and awe for the wider world." 

The brief:  "Write a love letter to travel about one place in the world that is special to you. It can be a popular tourist destination, or a place that’s largely overlooked.  You might inspire someone else to go there one day, or to reconsider their assumptions, or to spark their inquisitiveness about a new piece of the world — all the empowering things that travel brings to our lives.  (Some additional prompts to help you:  How did this place change your perception about something?  What do you wish more people understood about this destination?  Did you have an experience there that couldn’t have happened anywhere else?  What would you miss most if you couldn’t visit this place for a long time).

Grandparents 
Describe your relationship with a grandparent using one fond memory. Draw on your senses to recall specific details and reflect on the impact he or she made on your life.   It may be the time Gran nearly set the kitchen on fire with the Christmas pudding, or the time your 92 year old Grandpa rode the Octopus with you at Luna Park. It could be a story about your Grandmother’s heritage and how she came to Australia. Your story could be about the era your grandfather represents, and the role he played in your upbringing or a special ritual you shared.
_____________________________

If you would like to dip in to the website for some Covid Lockdown reading and/or inspiration, here is the link to the  'Our Stories' page.  

I look forward to seeing you at the U3A Meeting Room next Monday at 2pm (fingers crossed) and/or to receiving emailed stories in my inbox.  Please do not hesitate to call me if you have any questions or would like to run something past me.

Best wishes, 


Beverley Lee
5762 8171 or 0478 607 838

Attachments:
Tips for Writing 500 Words Stories
Planning a story for 500 Words Topics - sample

‘As time goes by’ – Memoir Writing sessions provide an outlet and support for members keen to write about their lives.  The ‘500 word’ topics for writing over the holiday period which will be shared at our first session in the U3A Meeting Room on Monday 22 February at 2 pm are:

1.  'One Moment, This Year’  ‘Looking back on 2020, what single moment stands out for you?  Whether it be loss, love, discovery or disappointment, share your unforgettable moment.’

2.  ‘A Love Letter to Travel’  ‘Write a love letter to travel about one place in the world that is special to you. It can be a popular tourist destination, or a place that’s largely overlooked.  You might inspire someone else to go there one day, or to reconsider their assumptions, or to spark their inquisitive-ness about a new piece of the world — all the empowering things that travel brings to our lives’.
​
Beverley

A reminder of the topics to be share at our first meeting in late February, which hopefully will be held in the U3A meeting room.

1.  'One Moment, This Year’  ‘Looking back on 2020, what single moment stands out for you?  Whether it be loss, love, discovery or disappointment, share your unforgettable moment.’ Elizabeth Kearns has submitted her story for ‘One Moment, This Year’ already.  It’s so pertinent, we thought we’d include it with this newsletter.  Thank you for letting us share it Elizabeth

2.  ‘A Love Letter to Travel’  ‘Write a love letter to travel about one place in the world that is special to you. It can be a popular tourist destination, or a place that’s largely overlooked.  You might inspire someone else to go there one day, or to reconsider their assumptions, or to spark their inquisitive-ness about a new piece of the world — all the empowering things that travel brings to our lives’.

Did anyone else receive a ‘memoir’ as a Christmas Present?  I’ve just finished reading ’Your own kind of girl’, by Claire Bowditch.  This beautifully written memoir is underpinned by a quest to provide reassurance and support for people who, like Claire, suffer from Anxiety.
​
Bev Lee

Our afternoon tea meeting at ‘The Northo’ on Monday 23 November was splendid!  It was wonderful to be together again, although there was a tinge of awkwardness at first.  It seemed odd to feel ‘uncaged’, to believe that our shackles had been lifted.  Before long we relaxed, shared news of our lives, then moved on to share stories on November theme “Triggers’.  Stories were shared titled ‘Aprons’, ‘Swagmen’, ‘Mr. Gilmartin’s Store’; ‘I’ve Played at Royal Melbourne’; ‘Slowing Down’ and ‘Summertime’, while Ray shared an earlier ‘Back in the day’ story about owning a Benalla laundromat, triggering a number of us to think about laundromats we have known!   Other stories shared on the website have been based on triggers relating to ‘Renovations’, ‘Marriage’, and ‘Challenges’.  A beautiful story by Helen Duggin on the theme ‘This Life’ has also been added to the website.

Holiday topics to share at our first meeting in late February (or earlier if you would like to add them to your webpage):

'One Moment, This Year'  “Looking back on 2020, what single moment stands out for you?  Whether it be loss, love, discovery or disappointment, share your unforgettable moment.”
​
‘A Love Letter to Travel’    "Write a love letter to travel about one place in the world that is special to you. It can be a popular tourist destination, or a place that’s largely overlooked.  You might inspire someone else to go there one day, or to reconsider their assumptions, or to spark their inquisitiveness about a new piece of the world — all the empowering things that travel brings to our lives.  (Some additional prompts to help you:  How did this place change your perception about something?  What do you wish more people understood about this destination?  Did you have an experience there that couldn’t have happened anywhere else?  What would you miss most if you couldn’t visit this place for a long time).

This topic was suggested recently by the New York Times... "while the coronavirus pandemic has disrupted global travel in unprecedented ways ...and we can’t know what lies ahead, we can still share the places we’ve loved, and continue to inspire curiosity, open-mindedness and awe for the wider world."

If you are thinking of joining ‘As Time Goes By’ next year, feel free to start writing on these topics ready for our first meeting in late February.  All welcome.

Bev Lee

Last month's topic, 'Right Here, Right Now', proved popular, with 10 stories added to the collection on our web page.  We've included Judy Perry's 'Right Here, Right Now' story in 'Covid Musings' as it could resonate with other U3A members who have attended the Covid-19 socially distanced early morning exercise classes in the car park of the Recreation Centre in Ackerly Avenue.

Stories for late September's topic, 'Out of the Blue' by Elizabeth Kearns, Bev Morton, Judy Perry and Ray O'Shannessy have been added to the website, with more due over the coming week.

October's topic usually follows the topic set for the annual Benalla Festival's, Writing Competition.  With the Festival being cancelled this year, we are trying something different.  The theme is '"This Life".  The aim is to submit a 500 word story of own choice, a story important to you, a story you have often wanted to write about.  After writing the story, develop a title for it using the title 'This (......) Life".  Drawing on titles submitted to the Australian newspaper's 'This .... Life' weekly column of submitted stories, it might be something like, "This (inspiring) Life", "This (entitled) Life", "This (serendipitous) Life" or ‘This (downsizing) Life’,  A recent story published in the Australian was titled - ‘This (Number 8) Life’ - a story about growing up as ‘Number 8’ in a family of nine children.  If you have difficulty titling your story in this way, submit it anyway and we'll come up with a suggestion for you.

​Bev Lee     

It is always a thrill when stories by ‘As Time Goes By’ group members arrive in my email inbox each month. Many of this month’s 'Right Here, Right Now' stories explore experiences of the Covid-19 pandemic and are well worth reading.  Bev Morton’s story ‘Right Here, Right Now… Portrait of a Pandemic’ and Claire Rudolph's 'Right Here, Right Now' stories are included in the September newsletter; others will be published in future newsletters and included in ‘Covid-19 Musings’.

Becoming immersed in writing memoir-based stories is a wonderful way to stave off loneliness, particularly if living alone.  Reminiscing is also supposed to be good for retaining our linguistic and other skills!   If you would like to write and submit stories on our monthly topics during this most unusual, rather surreal, time, email them to me at bevlee47@gmail.com on or around the 4th Monday of the month or arrange to drop your story in my letterbox!  

Our September topic - due on or around Monday 28 September – ‘I came down with a thud’… or ‘Out of the Blue’ -  ‘Share your memories of a time when ‘you came down with a thud’ or when something happened ‘out of the blue’ in 500 words’.
 
Bev Lee

Our monthly stories are being shared as topic ‘collections’ on the website – a way of sharing them which allows recognition of common memories so enjoyed when we shared stories in class BC ie…’before covid’.  This month ‘Car Stories’ and reminiscences drawn from our ‘Ideas Piggy Bank’ were shared on-line and added to our individual pages on ‘Our Stories’.  A further story has been added to ‘I Grew Up ...’.

With more time at home on our hands, a master list of ‘500 words’ topics covered since the group commenced in 2015 to the end of 2020 has been emailed to class members. The aim is to encourage everyone to keep writing during the Covid-break!  There’s also a column for ‘decades’ to help us to sequence stories into whether they occurred when we were children, teenagers, twenty or thirty somethings…, or seventy, eighty or ninety somethings! 

Our topic for Monday 24 August is ‘Right Here, Right Now' - ‘A time capsule of the present.  Write a story about a situation currently unfolding in your life, right here, right now’. Upcoming topics for Monday 28 September - ‘I came down with a thud’… or ‘Out of the Blue’ -  ‘Share your memories of a time when ‘you came down with a thud’ or when something happened ‘out of the blue’ in 500 words’. Email stories to bevlee47@gmail.com.   All welcome to join in!

Bev Lee

A collection of stories responding to topics set during the Covid-18 break is now available on the “Our Stories” page on website.  Our most recent topic, “I Grew Up in….”, resulted in evocative stories being shared describing growing up in ‘an institutional setting’, Chiltern, ‘the War Years’, Ireland, ‘a family of six’, with more to come.

The task for late July is to dip into our “Ideas Piggy Bank”.  If you are new to the group or thinking of joining, the idea is to create an “Ideas Piggy Bank” in a shoe box, or treasured, perhaps decorated box, adding to it “objects and artefacts that enliven your memories, through scent and feel.  Maps, menus, theatre programs, an old report card, vials of perfume, a garment, treasured photographs, a souvenir, an expired passport can sometimes trigger a work rich with detail”. (2) Select two items from this piggy bank as creative prompts – what do they mean to you?  What were you doing, why; what were you thinking at the time this object related to your life?   (250 words for each object).  Perhaps you could attach a photo or two to the email to include with your story on the web site.   

Last year, group members reminisced drawing upon objects and artefacts including two Olympic Games programs; a breakfast menu from the Ghan; a treasured family photo; a missive won as an award as a child, a pair of toe shoes worn as a 13 year old; a Brownie Box camera; a brooch; mementos of trips abroad; an imagined blue Malvern Star bike ridden on for the first time; rosary beads; a toy made by a treasured friend; a small folio of papers and newspaper articles found after a father's death; three wise monkeys and Milk Arrowroot biscuits.

An alternative topic on offer in July, is ‘Car Stories’ - the brief ‘So many formative moments happen in cars – tell us about a memorable experience you had in yours.  It could be your first taste of P-plate freedom, a revealing in-transit conversation, or how an accident, a flat tyre, or parking ticket set off a chain of events in your day…or?’   

After enjoying readubg Claire's nostalgia inducing story 'How I met Karl' in July, 'How We Met' was set as the alternative topic.  Later I remembered this had been a topic not that long ago.  If you haven't already written a nostalgia filled 'How we met...' story, or if you would like to write another one, feel free to do so! 

​Bev Lee

This month Betty contributed a poem for the newsletter and her web page written in response to  'COVID-19',   Barry and Margaret reflected on Anzac Day, while Joy, Elizabeth, Ray, Bev and Marg wrote about 'Winging It' or 'Taking the Plunge'.  Stories due in late May for 'Turning Point' and a catch up story by Marg Nelson for February's topic 'Something I'm Proud Of' have already been submitted.  

Our topic for Monday 22 June is 'I Grew Up In...' - an open ended chance to reminisce about our childhood from all sorts of interesting angles.  Email stories to bevlee47@gmail.com.  

Beverley Lee

We’re underway with our social distancing project, sharing stories written on monthly topics on the website.  They are added first under a password for class members to read and comment on, then made available to all visitors to the website and added to each writer’s page on ‘Our Stories’. 

Seven ‘Making Waves’ stories (our topic for March) are now available to all visitors to our web page.  I really enjoyed reading these stories - an underlying theme was the anxiety involved and resilience required to 'make waves' and the reinforcement of personal integrity which can result.  

April’s topics ‘Anzac Day’ and ‘Taking a risk and winging it’ or ‘Taking the plunge’ are currently being added under password for class members to read and comment briefly upon.  Here are some triggers to use when writing comments -  

• Did you relate to the story? Did you empathise with the writer?  
• Did the story trigger memories for you?  Perhaps with an example or two.
• How did you react to the story?   How did it make you feel? 

The topic for May is 'Turning Point'  - an example from Life Matters’ '500 words' (click on link)...Leaving London on the Brink of War.  This will be followed in June by ‘I grew up in ….’ – a topic we hope will act as prompt for creative exploration of lots of childhood memories. 

Remember, if the monthly topic doesn't work for you, you can always draw from your 'Ideas Piggy Bank' or little book of 'triggers'....(choose two elements from either of these sources and write a story of about 250 words or so on each) or write on a universal topic such as 'The year that made me'; 'New in Town'; or 'Someone who Shaped me'. 

Please give me a call on 5762 8171 or 0478 607 838 if you have any questions.  New members welcome!

Bev Lee

A reminder that our usual 'As Time Goes By' class date would be tomorrow from 2 to 4pm and that the plan is to endeavour to email stories to bevlee47@gmail.com by then.  They will then be added  to a 'passworded' page on the website for us to read and comment on before general release on the website.  

This process commenced with the 'Making Waves' topic in late March. Six 'Making Waves' stories, with a comment or two on each, are now generally available on the website.  I really enjoyed reading these stories - an underlying theme was the anxiety involved and resilience required to 'make waves' and the reinforcement of personal integrity which can result.  

Making comments in writing proved an interesting if tricky experience.  How did you find it? 

​Writing in terms of the following responses may make commenting less confronting.  Remember, your comment doesn't need to be long.  A sentence or two is fine!

1. Did you relate to the story? Did you empathise with the writer?  
2. Did the story trigger memories for you?  Perhaps with an example or two.
3. How did you react to the story?   How did it make you feel?  

The comments made on the Making Waves stories seem to fit these 'gentle guidelines'...for example 
1.  Did you relate to the story, empathise with the writer?  
"I can relate to that.  You were a woman with initiative."  
"Well done. I have always impressed upon junior staff that your integrity is everything. If you compromise your integrity, you also compromise your credibility." 
2.  Did the story trigger memories for you, reflections on the past?  For example?
  ... "Your story brought back memories to me of people I knew who had polio as children, of receiving the Salk vaccine on a little block of sugar, and more." 
 "An interesting subject. My oldest daughter attended a high school where wearing a uniform was optional (1978 onwards). She chose not to wear it. My youngest daughter attended a prestigious high school where no girl would dare disobey the school rules on uniforms. Both girls are successful in their careers and are among the important 'behind the scenes' workers in the management of COVID-19."  
3.  How did you react to the story?  How did it make you feel? 
"What an amazing story of perseverence; of acting with authenticity based on deeply held values; of continuing and skilful efforts to work towards justice. .."
"Another wonderful poem, one which creatively explores an issue you are passionate about. It also conveys a sense of the emotions attached to 'Making Waves'. It can be unsettling 'letting go' to express ideas we are passionate about which make waves..." 
"This must have been like an undercurrent impacting upon you fairly constantly requiring resilience, with the occasional big wave when the issue would surface yet again requiring strength and determination to overcome..."    

Hope this helps!  Don't feel that you need to comment on everyone's story - or that you need to comment at all if you find this doesn't come easily to you. 

Here again are the April topics just in case you need to have them at hand:  

• The first topic, suggested by Barry O'Connor as our class follows two days later, is 'Anzac Day'.  A chance to reminisce about memories of Anzac Day (or Days) which have stayed with us over time.
• The second topic is inspired by this month's story by Margaret Nelson's story 'Do you remember the polio epidemic' (see below).  Has the current COVID-19 ‘Pandemic’ triggered memories for you relating to infectious diseases, whether local, epidemic or pandemic?
• The third topic, as set on our list of topics for the first four months, is 'Winging It' or 'Taking the Plunge' - Do you have a story about taking a risk and winging it?

The topic for May is 'Turning Point'  - an example from Life Matters '500 words' ...Leaving London on the Brink of War  If the topic 'Turning Point' doesn't suit you, catchup on an earlier topic; draw from your 'Ideas Piggy Bank' or little book of 'triggers'....(choose two elements from either of these sources and write a story of about, each of 250 words or so on each) or write on a universal topic such as 'The year that made me'; 'New in Town'; or 'Someone who Shaped me'.

Please give me a call on 5762 8171 or 0478 607 838 if you have any questions,


Beverley

With our 'As Time Goes By' memoir writing group meeting late in March and new COVID-19 Regulations being released daily, it soon became obvious that we would be unable to proceed with our March meeting.  

However, we have developed a plan! Having shared stories online in the past through the website on 'Our Stories' and with even more time to write, we're trialling a system of sharing our monthly stories on line through the website.

Early this week the first six stories for our March topic, 'Making Waves', were shared on-line. Currently password protected as members have the chance to read, comment on and even add additional stories, the plan is to make most if not all 'Making Waves' stories available for all members to read on the website in coming weeks.

We have three topics for April - choose any or all - with a submission date of Monday April 27th.

• The first topic, suggested by Barry O'Connor as our class follows two days later, is 'Anzac Day'.  A chance to reminisce about memories of Anzac Day (or Days) which have stayed with us over time.
• The second topic is inspired by this month's story by Margaret Nelson's story 'Do you remember the polio epidemic' (see below).  Has the current COVID-19 ‘Pandemic’ triggered memories for you relating to infectious diseases, whether local, epidemic or pandemic?
• The third topic, as set on our list of topics for the first four months, is 'Winging It' or 'Taking the Plunge' - Do you have a story about taking a risk and winging it?

U3A members who enjoy writing and are finding themselves with more time on their hands are welcome to join with us in sharing stories on-line. All you need to do is to email bevlee47@gmail.com - you can write the story in the body of the email or attach it as a word or pdf document.  The suggested, but not heavily policed, word limit is 500 words.

Bev Lee


COVID19 - Do you remember the polio epidemic? 
 
“Do you remember the polio epidemic in 1949—50, or previous flu epidemics before vaccinations were available?  They were worrying at the time, but nothing compared to the present pandemic, made even more frightening because of the frequent TV updates, and no available vaccine.

I clearly remember the polio epidemic—most people knew of someone who caught the disease and become crippled, or worse, ended up in an iron lung to enable breathing, or even died. The people were advised to avoid crowds.

My most vivid memory is of my first day at Benalla High School.  Our family had just returned from a beach holiday on the Saturday for the start of school on the Tuesday. I duly went off on the Violet Town school bus with my local state school friends who started that day, decked out in my new uniform and hat.

When the bell rang, we assembled in the quadrangle, and it was announced that anyone who had not been at their residence in the last two weeks had to stay away from school for the next two weeks.  This was scary to a shy little country girl!  There were a few others from Violet Town and we had to fill in the day wandering the street and gardens till bus time at 3.30, then go back on the bus with the other children.  So much for isolating us from the others.

Another two weeks at home!  Fortunately, the local headmaster felt sorry for me and set some maths and English for me so I wouldn’t get too far behind.  Eventually I restarted at Benalla High School, but the others had had their intelligence test and were allocated their form and their sports houses.

Not an ideal start, but I got going.

It was much later before a vaccine was produced.  Salk, an injection, and later perfected to a syrup, Sabin, which was successful”.

Hopefully a vaccine for COVD19 will soon be available.’ 
​      
Margaret Nelson, March 2020

Do you remember receiving your polio vaccine, tuberculosis injections, many decades ago?  People I've been chatting to have been reminiscing about these events, adding 'that was serious, but it wasn't anything like this!'  

To be on the safe side, and with regulations about social distancing being expanded out in terms of available room size just today, it seems best to cancel our U3A meeting room based sessions until further notice.  

It would be wonderful, however, to keep writing.  We could use the U3A website to share our stories.  I would initially up a page with a password for group members to share and read stories on our monthly topics, perhaps making this available for other members to read when everyone feels comfortable about sharing their story more widely.   

To make this work, all you need to do is to attach your story - for Monday's class 'Making Waves' - to an email and send it to bevlee47@gmail.com and I'll set up a page to include them.  We could of course trial reading them into our phones and sending them as audio files.... but let's not get ahead of ourselves!  (If you have difficulty attaching documents to emails, give me a call and we will sort out a way for me to access your story.)  

How does this sound?  Feedback welcome, otherwise I look forward to receiving an email from you with your story/stories attached each month.

Bev 

PS - if you missed the first class, you can find out about the topics for the next three months, along with some back up topics, in the posts below this one.   

There’s something quite special about reminiscing through story telling!  It was wonderful to welcome new and welcome back returning class members this month.  Class members who had tackled the holiday topics of ‘Something in my life I’m really proud of’ and ‘Auntie, Uncle or cousin’ shared stories which were often moving and evoked memories for other class members.  

​Our topic for March is Making Waves – the brief:
Is there a time in your life when you've been accused of making waves?  It could be in your personal life, the workplace, socially...even politically.
So, what have you done that's caught people's attention, and changed the usual way of doing things? It can be funny, sad, poignant, illuminating— it just needs to be a captivating!

Do you enjoy writing poetry? You are most welcome to join ‘As Time Goes By’ to share poetry inspired by our monthly topics, something which one of our members often does to great effect.   
 
Beverley Lee