Welcome to Heritage-Memories — Where Family Stories Come Alive! I keep getting off track in writing these articles. Life just seems to take unexpected turns. I went to the doctor in early June expecting to learn if I had some kind of infection. They tested for COVID which was negative… but noted that my heart…
Author: Arlene Watkins
My Hope and Healing Ministry
After spending much of my childhood on the farm, I love nature. And I love photography. I like to feed the birds, so I have a lot of bird pictures. I love flowers and trees. I enjoy visiting the mountains and oceans. My spiritual journey lead me to make a photo book where I combined…
Storms
We live in the Kansas City area. The last several weeks, we have had numerous rounds of “severe weather.” It feels like every morning I look at the forecast and see “There is a likely risk of severe weather today. Wind, tornadoes and hail are possible. Look out for damaging winds. Stay aware and be…
Memories
So you may ask, after nine years, how does it feel to lose a son? The pain is still there, different but still present. Often triggered by another person’s loss, a date on the calendar or a memory. You often hear that people don’t talk about your child because they don’t want to make you…
Puppies
As you may have read, we are bereaved parents. Our son passed away in 2015 after five years of cancer treatments. It is a grief like no other. We have been able to find comfort in our family dog. Our daughter rescued a dog ten days after losing her brother, our son. The shelter guessed…
Write Your Story
The last several years, I have developed an interest in genealogy. Why? Because I was scanning my mother’s photo books and found so many details about our family that I didn’t realize she had saved. Suddenly, I wanted to know more. Now I am determined to write something that our grandkids will have after we…
January 28 – Data Privacy Day
Today, January 28th, is Data Privacy Day! Do you think about data privacy when you go on-line or sign up for that free app or game? Do you ask yourself “is it worth the amount of information required to get access?” A game does not need to know your age or where you live. So…
Sticky Albums
I was reading information on sticky albums that were popular in the 70s. So thought it might be helpful if I passed along what I’ve learned over the years. If you run into these in your inherited boxes of photos, there are ways to deal with them. I would recommend taking a picture of each…
Write Your Story
The last couple of years, I have developed an interest in genealogy. Why? Because I was scanning my mother’s photo books and found so many details about our family that I didn’t realize she had saved. Suddenly, I wanted to know more. For example, I had always heard the story that my father lost his…
Painful Memories or Blessings
Since we lost our son, James, I have attended grief groups, conferences, read many articles and participated in Facebook group discussions. Even though we are in our sixth year, I still find it difficult to read long articles; and have read very few books. I simply cannot concentrate. When our son’s fiancée cleared the home…